- Visit-Montenegro.com : Super Gasoline Costs Euro 0,99 . while Diesel Fell to Euro 0,96
- Visit-Montenegro.com : Half a Billion Euro in Revenues and More Guests by Five Percent
- Visit-Montenegro.com : Each Fourth Guest from Serbia
- Visit-Montengro.com : Only if a Portion of all the Announcements would be Realized
- Visit-Montenegro.com : Cooperation in Tourism and Culture
- Visit-Montenegro.com : Hoteliers Should Also Decrease their Prices
Visit-Montenegro.com : Mediterranean Monk Seal Spotted Swimming around Island of Mamula
Very Rare Mammal Spotted at the Entrance to Boka Bay: “If it is true that the passengers of this picnic-boat have seen a mammal resembling a sea lion or a seal, than this is very good news indeed, and we appeal to everyone not to hurt the animal, just to try and take its’ pictures. This is a highly endangered species, Mediterranean monk seal or ‘Monachus monachus’ in Latin”, Director of the Institute for Marine Biology, Aleksandar Joksimovic.
Herceg Novi – Owner of the picnic-boat “Boki” and his passengers spotted a rare mammal which reminded them of a sea lion yesterday. Institute for Marine Biology states this animal was a Mediterranean monk seal, a very rare and highly endangered species.
Marijan Malovic, who was taking tourists for a tour from Bijela, via Baosici and Djenovici to the locality of the Blue Cave and Zanjic beach told “Vijesti” that he was no less surprised than his 15 passengers when they spotted a mammal in the sea, which looked like a sea lion.
“We were some 100 meters away from Mamula, when girls from the boat pointed to an animal in water. It looked like a sea-lion or a seal. We proceeded in its’ direction and we approached her within just couple of meters. It all happened quickly, so we had no time to take photos. It dived back into the water, most probably frightened with the sound of the engine”, Malovic said.
In his words, this animal was around 1,5 meters long and weighted around 200 kilograms.
He thought it might be a sea lion which escaped a circus, which had been visiting Baosici, several years ago.
“If it is true that the passengers of this picnic-boat have seen a mammal resembling a sea lion or a seal, than this is very good news indeed, and we appeal to everyone not to hurt the animal, just to try and take its’ pictures. This is a highly endangered species, Mediterranean monk seal or ‘Monachus monachus’ in Latin”, Director of the Institute for Marine Biology, Aleksandar Joksimovic said, commenting on the sighting after hearing for it for the first time.
Joksimovic told “Vijesti” that this species was most seriously endangered and close to becoming extinct and that it has been seen around Croatian islands in the past. Croats succeeded in taking a photo of one specimen of this species in August.
“The fact that this monk seal, which is the non-aggressive Mediterranean species has appeared in our waters, means that it exists after all. I appeal to everyone not to touch it and not to kill it, as all countries which have a confirmed sighting are putting maximum efforts into preserving it and preventing its’ extinction”, Joksimovic concluded.
(5 September 2008)
By: S.R.