Hannah in Turkey - Monk Seal

Everyone knows how much I like the water, so I just had to support a marine animal. The one I've picked is the monk seal, which is one the planet's most endangered mammals. There are no more than 500 surviving, so we need to do everything we can to stop them being completely wiped out.

Day 1

Bradley: "Hannah and I both went shopping mad today, all around Istanbul. There were loads of markets selling everything you can think of, at really cheap prices."

Day 2

Hannah: "I got up really early today, to go to the market and buy some presents for Bradley it's his birthday."

Bradley: "We went camel trekking through sand dunes today which was a laugh. How I didn't fall off as the camel rose to it's feet I don't know. I soon got used to it though just had to hold on tight."

Day 3

Hannah: "We travelled to Foca today, which is where I will be trying to spot a Mediterranean monk seal. This evening we're going out with some fishermen to help them set some nets for tomorrow."

Day 4

Hannah: "I spent all of today trying to catch a glimpse of a monk seal, but unfortunately had no luck. I had been warned that there would be a very slim chance of spotting one, because they are so endangered. I still couldn't help but feel upset though. It's really made me realise the problems they face and how much they need our help."

Day 5

Bradley: "As Hannah was upset about not seeing her seal, I decided to cheer her up by arranging for us to go jet-skiing. I even set up a race between us, but unfortunately she won and that wasn't supposed to happen!"

WWF's Work

WWF projects to conserve the Mediterranean monk seal have been established off the Greek and Turkish coasts, where they are working with local fishermen, carrying out seal surveys and monitoring pollution. In Mauritania WWF has helped manage a national park to protect the seal for the last 18 years.

In the past, WWF projects have included conserving Saimaa seals in Finland and hooker sealions in New Zealand, developing an Antarctica conservation strategy and supporting the Galapagos Islands national park service. Off the coast of Chile, WWF also backed research into the Juan Fernandez fur seal, which was hunted almost to extinction and is only now making a slow comeback. In the United Kingdom, WWF works to reduce overfishing, disturbance and pollution, all of which threaten our own populations of harbour and grey seals.