A new extralimital sighting of Monachusmonachus (Hermann, 1779) in the Aquatina di Frigole NATURA 2000 site (IT9150003) beach (Salento peninsula, Apulia Region, Italy) after two decades: strategies for conservation are needed

Francesco Zangaro; Vincenzo Schifano; Valeria Specchia; Eftychia Tzafesta; Maurizio Pinna

doi:10.3897/BDJ.8.e53950

A new extralimital sighting of Monachusmonachus (Hermann, 1779) in the Aquatina di Frigole NATURA 2000 site (IT9150003) beach (Salento peninsula, Apulia Region, Italy) after two decades: strategies for conservation are needed

Biodivers Data J. 2020 Jun 15:8:e53950. doi: 10.3897/BDJ.8.e53950. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Francesco Zangaro¹, Vincenzo Schifano¹, Valeria Specchia¹, Eftychia Tzafesta¹, Maurizio Pinna¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, Research Centre of Fishery and Aquaculture of Acquatina di Frigole, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, Research Centre of Fishery and Aquaculture of Acquatina di Frigole, University of Salento Lecce Italy.

Abstract

The Mediterranean monk seal Monachusmonachus (Hermann, 1779) is the most endangered pinniped in the world. In addition, its presence has not been documented for about two decades in the Apulian Region and about 10 years along the Italian coastline. In this work, we aim to describe an exceptional and well-documented observation of a subadult specimen of Monachusmonachus occurring during the last days of January 2020 in the Salento peninsula (Apulia Region, Italy) for the first time after two decades of local extinction in the south-western Adriatic Sea.

Keywords: Citizen Science; Italian marine-coastal waters; Mediterranean monk seal; Monachusmonachus; NATURA 2000 site.; endangered pinniped.

Francesco Zangaro, Vincenzo Schifano, Valeria Specchia, Eftychia Tzafesta, Maurizio Pinna.

Grants and funding

This research was supported by ex-60% fund (FUR, Italian MIUR), by FFABR (Italian MIUR) and by ImPrEco Project (Interreg ADRION Programme 2014–2020; CUP C69H18000250007) attributed to M.

Pinna

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