In First, Rare Seal Makes Landfall On Israel’s Shore: Watch

JERUSALEM (JNS) – A rare seal was spotted on a beach in central Israel, with volunteers protecting it until it decides to return to sea.

The Israel Nature and Parks Authority said the Mediterranean monk seal is female and around 3-5 years old. She was named Julia, a name given by Muhammad, a child who was at the beach and helped the volunteers protect the mammal.

According to Guy Levian, the head of the Marine Unit at the Nature and Parks Authority, it was the first time a seal was sighted resting on the shore in Israel. In 2010, a seal was seen riding waves close to a Herzliya beach but did not come ashore.

The Mediterranean monk seal is one of the rarest marine mammals in the world, with around 600 individuals grouped into three geographically isolated subpopulations, the eastern Mediterranean (Greece, Cyprus, Turkey), the western coast of Africa and the Madeira archipelago.