One of the last seals…

…from the Mediterranean and from the next volume of the Handbook of the Mammals of the World. This is a pup of a Mediterranean Monk Seal (Monachus monachus), an animal that has always fascinated me.

At the moment I’m finishing the final illustrations of the sea mammals for the next volume of this encyclopaedia, which include drawings of the pups of all the pinnipeds (seals and sea-lions). Some of the drawings resemble adorable stuffed toys – above all, the Arctic seals – while others are less surprising – such as the elephant seals. However, the most gorgeous of all are the pups of the threatened Mediterranean Monk Seal, delightful with their delicate shiny black skins, white bellies and such tender expressions on their faces!

Some pups from seals, sealions, elephant seal and walrus

Around 10 years ago, a group of naturalist friends and I paddled in kayaks around the islands of the Aegean Sea in search of these seals. This is my field sketch drawn from the top of a cliff of the only seal we saw, off the coast of the island of Kimolos. One of the last such seals…

An adult monk seal swimming on the surface between the islands of Kimolos and Milos, Greece, 2003. Drawn in the company of Ponç Feliu and Pere Renom.