CC BY-SA 4.0, Babac62, Wikimedia CommonsWildlife· Alonissos· Greece — Dodecanese, Sporades & North Aegean
Mediterranean monk seal
39° 16.2′ N · 24° 3.0′ E · approximate
The Northern Sporades marine park was founded in 1992 to protect the Mediterranean monk seal — one of the world's rarest marine mammals, with only about 400–500 left, two-thirds of them in Greece.
Practical
Representative position in the park between Alonissos and Kyra Panagia. Pups are born mostly May–November, peaking September–October, in inaccessible caves (park website). If you see a seal (MOm): stay at least 30 m away, stay quiet, never touch, feed or block its way to the sea, keep children and pets back, never enter sea caves (a mother and pup may be inside) and never aim a speargun at one. Report sightings to MOm (+30 210 5222 888, 24-hour +30 6942 494471) or the nearest Port Authority. Yachting.com notes sightings are likelier outside peak season. In July 2021 Kostis, Alonissos' well-known seal, was killed, apparently by a spearfisher.
Best for
Responsible wildlife watching
Season
Year-round; pupping May–Nov
Nearby
- Alonissos Marine Park Zone A ticket2 NM away
- Agios Petros Bay (Kyra Panagia)3.2 NM away
- Agios Petros submerged Neolithic settlement (Kyra Panagia)3.2 NM away
- Monastery Cove (Monastiri, Kyra Panagia)3.8 NM away
- Kyra Panagia Monastery3.9 NM away
- Planitis (Kyra Panagia)4.7 NM away
- Livadakia Bay (Peristera)4.8 NM away
- Gerakas (Alonissos)4.9 NM away