CARIBBEAN MONK SEAL Monachus tropicalis (Gray) 



Order: PINNIPEDIA Family: PHOCIDAE 



Distinguishing characteristics : Size to about 8 feet in total length; uniform brownish- 

 gray above; underparts pale yellow or yellowish white. 



Present distribution : Not definitely known; two individuals were seen near Jamaica 

 in 1949, and it was known to occur in Jamaican waters as late as 1952. One was killed 

 in 1922 near Key West, Florida. Inhabited Seranilla Bank in the western Caribean 

 until at least 1952. 



Former distribution : Shores and islands of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, from 

 Honduras eastward to Jamaica, Cuba, Florida Keys and the Bahamas. (Reports from 

 Texas are unauthenticated . ) 



Status : Either in extremely small numbers or extinct. 



Estimated numbers : No estimate available . 



Breeding rate in the wild : One pup , perhaps only in alternate years . 



Reasons for decline : This seal is apparently sluggish, unsuspicious, and not easily 

 alarmed, allowing it to be readily approached and easily killed. It has been indis- 

 criminately slain since early Spanish days . 



Protective measures already taken : None . 



Measures proposed : A thorough aerial survey should be made of the Caribbean area to 

 determine if any still exist. If so, rigid international protective agreements should be 

 proposed . Establishment of a breeding colony at the Dry Tortugas (Fort Jefferson 

 National Monument) has been suggested . 



Number in captivity : None . 



Breeding potential in captivity : Unknown . 



Remarks : If not ailready extinct, this species is so decimated in numbers that there is 

 little hope for its continued survival . 



References : 



Allen, G. M. 1942. 452-455. 



Burt, W. H. 1971. Antarctic Pinnipedia . Part of Antarctic Research Series , 



Vol. 18, Publ . by American Geophysical Union. 

 Elliot. 1904. 542-543. 



Gilmore, R. 1959. Is the West Indian seal extinct? Sea Frontiers, 5(4): 225-236. 

 Gunter, G. 1947. Some records of the West Indian seal Monachus tropicalis 



(Gray), from the Texas coast. Jour. Mamm., 28(3): 289-290. 

 Scheffer. 1958. 113-114. 



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