Monk seals are earless seals of the genera Monachus and Neomonachus . They are the only earless seals found in tropical climates. There are three species of monk seal: the Mediterranean monk seal, Monachus monachus; the Hawaiian monk seal, Neomonachus schauinslandi; and the Caribbean monk seal, Neomonachus tropicalis, which went extinct in the 20th century. The two surviving species are now extremely rare and in imminent danger of extinction.