Also known as the West Indian seal and the sea wolf, this species of seal is the first to be lost in recent times. It is thought that it is a mixture of overfishing and direct hunting for seal oil which did it.

The last confirmed sightings of a living specimen was in 1952.

They are (or were) hunted by great white sharks, Galapagos sharks and tiger sharks.

Unfortunately, nothing can save this species, or indeed bring it back, which means that the area cannot benefit from tourism for this species