[4] Also like phocids, it lacks external ears. Despite their tusks, walruses seem cute. Name Game. Walruses are found throughout the northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans where they inhabit ice floes and rocky coastlines, along with spending a great deal of time in the freezing cold water. Indeed, most marine biologists think they use their massive chompers just to eat clams and other shellfish. Despite being wel… The walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. Even in the presence of a free area, a herd of walruses does not disperse along the coastline, but keeps cumulatively, just as they dive together into the water. Big Arctic animals – walruses live about 20-30 years. The calves learn to run within 2 weeks of being born, and they can begin their migration back to their northern climes. Skin and bone are used in some ceremonies, and the animal appears frequently in legends. Walruses are pinnipeds, which classifies them in … Atlantic walruses inhabit coastal areas from northeastern Canada to Greenland, while Pacific walruses inhabit the northern seas off Russia and Alaska, … The origin of the word walrus is thought by J.R.R. David Attenborough, the series' narrator, blames the incident on changes to the Arctic ecosystem that walruses inhabit. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the walrus was heavily exploited by American and European sealers and whalers, leading to the near-extirpation of the Atlantic subspecies. [45][46] There were roughly 200,000 Pacific walruses in 1990. It is the sole surviving member of the family Odobenidae, one of three lineages in the suborder Pinnipedia along with true seals (Phocidae) and eared seals (Otariidae). [36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44], In 2006, the population of the Pacific walrus was estimated to be around 129,000 on the basis of an aerial census combined with satellite tracking. If another animal decided to make a meal of a napping walrus, the water would actually be the toothy beast's best chance of escape. They appear awkward on land but graceful in the water where they feel most comfortable. The recorded largest tusks are just over 30 inches and 37 inches long respectively. The current population of these walruses has been estimated to be between 5,000 and 10,000. [25], Seal tissue has been observed in fairly significant proportion of walrus stomachs in the Pacific, but the importance of seals in the walrus diet is under debate. [51][52] In April 2006, the Canadian Species at Risk Act listed the population of the northwestern Atlantic walrus in Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador as having been eradicated in Canada. There is no hierarchy in the herd, all members of the herd are less equal in their rights. They tend to stay close to the shorelines but they will dive up to 260 feet to find food that they want to consume. Walruses are widely distributed but occupy a relatively narrow ecological niche, requiring areas of shallow water. Walrus tusks were a big commodity during the period, with Europeans willing to pay big money or trade iron and much-needed timber (trees are scarce in Greenland) for the ivory. [87] This myth is possibly related to the Chukchi myth of the old walrus-headed woman who rules the bottom of the sea, who is in turn linked to the Inuit goddess Sedna. [65] Walruses may occasionally prey on ice-entrapped narwhals and scavenge on whale carcasses but there is little evidence to prove this. Because skin blood vessels constrict in cold water, the walrus can appear almost white when swimming. [81], The effects of global climate change are another element of concern. The diet of the Pacific walrus consist almost exclusively of benthic invertebrates (97 percent). For more on walruses and related topics, try some of the links floating around on the next page. Its skin is highly wrinkled and thick, up to 10 cm (4 in) around the neck and shoulders of males. [15] These dates coincide with the hypothesis derived from fossils that the walrus evolved from a tropical or subtropical ancestor that became isolated in the Atlantic Ocean and gradually adapted to colder conditions in the Arctic. [11] Recent multigene analysis indicates the odobenids and otariids diverged from the phocids about 20–26 million years ago, while the odobenids and the otariids separated 15–20 million years ago. ][citation needed] Compare морж (morž) in Russian, mursu in Finnish, morša in Northern Saami, and morse in French. During the winter months when the ice is at its thickest, Walruses tend to prefer areas of thinner ice that they can easily break through to the surface from the water underneath. [58], The walrus has a diverse and opportunistic diet, feeding on more than 60 genera of marine organisms, including shrimp, crabs, tube worms, soft corals, tunicates, sea cucumbers, various mollusks, and even parts of other pinnipeds. They can be found in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Arctic Ocean. [47][48], The much smaller population of Atlantic walruses ranges from the Canadian Arctic, across Greenland, Svalbard, and the western part of Arctic Russia. Even in the mating season, they do not have fatal battles, adults do not squeeze the young as it happens in other species. Every year, they cover 1,863 miles in migration. Interesting facts about the island of Wrangel. [6] For example, the Old Norse word hrossvalr means "horse-whale" and is thought to have been passed in an inverted form to both Dutch and the dialects of northern Germany as walros and Walross. Due to the reduction in abundance, the walrus area now exploded into several unconnected sites. Walrus use their mighty tusks to forage and lift themselves up onto sea ice. The distinctive 12th-century Lewis Chessmen from northern Europe are carved from walrus ivory. In relation to relatives, walruses are more peaceful than other seals. [4] Walruses live mostly in shallow waters above the continental shelves, spending significant amounts of their lives on the sea ice looking for benthic bivalve mollusks to eat. [86], The walrus plays an important role in the religion and folklore of many Arctic peoples. The females begin ovulating as soon as four to six years old. Each one features from 400 to 700 whiskers. There are three subspecies of walrus. While some outsized Pacific males can weigh as much as 2,000 kg (4,400 lb), most weigh between 800 and 1,700 kg (1,800 and 3,700 lb). Because of its distinctive appearance, great bulk, and immediately recognizable whiskers and tusks, the walrus also appears in the popular cultures of peoples with little direct experience with the animal, particularly in English children's literature. There are 2 sub-species of walruses, Atlantic and Pacific. [49] The Atlantic walrus once ranged south to Sable Island, Nova Scotia, and as late as the 18th century was found in large numbers in the Greater Gulf of St. Lawrence region, sometimes in colonies of up to 7,000 to 8,000 individuals. Tusks are also used to form and maintain holes in the ice and aid the walrus in climbing out of water onto ice. [4] They are not particularly deep divers compared to other pinnipeds; their deepest recorded dives are around 80 m (260 ft). Walruses are relatively long-lived, social animals, and they are considered to be a "keystone species" in the Arctic marine regions. As a secondary sexual characteristic, males also acquire significant nodules, called "bosses", particularly around the neck and shoulders. [15] From there, it presumably recolonized the North Pacific Ocean during high glaciation periods in the Pleistocene via the Central American Seaway. The largest single herd of walrus in Canada has about 5,000 members. The Arctic is warming at twice the rate of anywhere else on Earth. [25] While the dentition of walruses is highly variable, they generally have relatively few teeth other than the tusks. The extent and thickness of the pack ice has reached unusually low levels in several recent years. Laptev walruses live in the Laptev Sea of Russia. The polar bear often hunts the walrus by rushing at beached aggregations and consuming the individuals crushed or wounded in the sudden exodus, typically younger or infirm animals. Males aggregate in the water around ice-bound groups of estrous females and engage in competitive vocal displays. This more widely separates lactating females from their calves, increasing nutritional stress for the young and lower reproductive rates. Walrus are huge. I Am the Walrus The walrus has many adaptations that enable it to live in the harsh, frigid conditions near the Arctic Circle. [80] The sustainability of these levels of harvest is difficult to determine given uncertain population estimates and parameters such as fecundity and mortality. While there has been some debate as to whether all three lineages are monophyletic, i.e. [78], Hunter sitting on dozens of walruses killed for their tusks, 1911, Walrus tusk scrimshaw made by Chukchi artisans depicting polar bears attacking walruses, on display in the Magadan Regional Museum, Magadan, Russia, Trained walrus in captivity at Marineland, Walrus being fed at Skansen in Stockholm, Sweden, 1908, Walrus hunts are regulated by resource managers in Russia, the United States, Canada, and Denmark, and representatives of the respective hunting communities. Unlike seals walruses avoid extensive water spaces and endless pack (long-term) ice, so they are found only on the coasts of Europe, Asia, North America and the Arctic islands. They live in groups of 10-20 individuals, but can form rookeries up to 100-3000 individuals (more often such large groups are created by females). In the poem, the eponymous antiheroes use trickery to consume a great number of oysters. Walruses Are Related to Seals and Sea Lions. Atlantic walruses can be found from northeast Canada to Greenland, while Pacific walruses are seen off Russia and Alaska. What do walruses eat? Male Pacific walrus are slightly larger, with longer tusks. They can swim to a depth of around 100m to feed on molluscs and other invertebrates, but on average do not go much deeper than 20-30m. This species is subdivided into two subspecies:[2] the Atlantic walrus (O. r. rosmarus), which lives in the Atlantic Ocean, and the Pacific walrus (O. r. divergens), which lives in the Pacific Ocean. A lone mountain walrus makes the trek across the Nevada desert. Fixed genetic differences between the Atlantic and Pacific subspecies indicate very restricted gene flow, but relatively recent separation, estimated at 500,000 and 785,000 years ago. It disturbs (bioturbates) the sea floor, releasing nutrients into the water column, encouraging mixing and movement of many organisms and increasing the patchiness of the benthos. Females weigh about two-thirds as much as males, with the Atlantic females averaging 560 kg (1,230 lb), sometimes weighing as little as 400 kg (880 lb), and the Pacific female averaging 800 kg (1,800 lb). Walruses are very sensitive to disturbances. From adistance the walrus appears to be without fur. Olaus Magnus, who depicted the walrus in the Carta Marina in 1539, first referred to the walrus as the ros marus, probably a Latinization of morž, and this was adopted by Linnaeus in his binomial nomenclature. Limits on commercial hunting allowed the population to increase to a peak in the 1970s-1980s, but subsequently, walrus numbers have again declined. These are elongated canines, which are present in both male and female walruses and can reach a length of 1 m (3 ft 3 in) and weigh up to 5.4 kg (12 lb). In the warmer summer months when the ice recedes, Walruses can be found more commonly on remote areas of rocky coastline. [89], The "walrus" in the cryptic Beatles song "I Am the Walrus" is a reference to the Lewis Carroll poem. The species name rosmarus is Scandinavian. Their population has rebounded somewhat since then, though the populations of Atlantic and Laptev walruses remain fragmented and at low levels compared with the time before human interference. The Norwegian manuscript Konungsskuggsja, thought to date from around AD 1240, refers to the walrus as "rosmhvalr" in Iceland and "rostungr" in Greenland (walruses were by now extinct in Iceland and Norway, while the word evolved in Greenland). [90], Another appearance of the walrus in literature is in the story "The White Seal" in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, where it is the "old Sea Vitch—the big, ugly, bloated, pimpled, fat-necked, long-tusked walrus of the North Pacific, who has no manners except when he is asleep". The maximal number of teeth is 38 with dentition formula: 3.1.4.23.1.3.2, but over half of the teeth are rudimentary and occur with less than 50% frequency, such that a typical dentition includes only 18 teeth 1.1.3.00.1.3.0[4], Surrounding the tusks is a broad mat of stiff bristles ("mystacial vibrissae"), giving the walrus a characteristic whiskered appearance. [24][33], The majority of the population of the Pacific walrus spends its summers north of the Bering Strait in the Chukchi Sea of the Arctic Ocean along the northern coast of eastern Siberia, around Wrangel Island, in the Beaufort Sea along the northern shore of Alaska south to Unimak Island,[34] and in the waters between those locations. In the spring and fall, walruses congregate throughout the Bering Strait, reaching from the western coast of Alaska to the Gulf of Anadyr. They can remain submerged for as long as half an hour. 3. Both the killer whale and the polar bear are also most likely to prey on walrus calves. O. rosmarus rosmarus Several place names in Iceland, Greenland and Norway may originate from walrus sites: Hvalfjord, Hvallatrar and Hvalsnes to name some, all being typical walrus breeding grounds. [68] The walrus does not, however, comprise a significant component of either of these predators' diets. Young walruses are deep brown and grow paler and more cinnamon-colored as they age. Perhaps some individuals can live up to 40 and even 50 years. Walruses have few predators other than the occasional killer whale or brave polar bear. As you read these walrus facts you can be confident that your knowledge about them is going to continue to expand. Two subspecies of walrus are widely recognized: the Atlantic walrus, O. r. rosmarus (Linnaeus, 1758) and the Pacific walrus, O. r. divergens (Illiger, 1815). Seasonal migrations of walruses are very short: in winter they move to the south, but only a few hundred kilometers, which is not enough for such animals. [30] This lower fat content in turn causes a slower growth rate among calves and a longer nursing investment for their mothers. SushiWalrus streams live on Twitch! [citation needed][56][57], Walruses prefer shallow shelf regions and forage primarily on the sea floor, often from sea ice platforms. Since walruses have few natural predators, they don't really have to worry about being eaten while they slumber either. In winter large numbers can be found throughout the Bering Strait and into the Bering Sea, along the eastern Siberian Coast and southern coast of Alaska. Traditional hunters used all parts of the walrus. Walruses live in Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of the world near the North Pole. [91], 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T15106A45228501.en, "Use of spectral analysis to test hypotheses on the origin of pinnipeds", "Phylogeny and divergence of the pinnipeds (Carnivora: Mammalia) assessed using a multigene dataset", 10.1671/0272-4634(2006)26[411:ANMOMC]2.0.CO;2, "State of Circumpolar Walrus Populations : Odobenus rosmarus", "A new tuskless walrus from the Miocene of Orange County, California, with comments on the diversity and taxonomy of odobenids". [4], Walruses live to about 20–30 years old in the wild. The Russian Atlantic and Laptev Sea populations are classified as Category 2 (decreasing) and Category 3 (rare) in the Russian Red Book. [53] A genetically distinct population existed in Iceland that was wiped out after Norse settlement around 1213–1330 AD. [55] Global trade in walrus ivory is restricted according to a CITES Appendix 3 listing. [24] Walrus milk contains higher amounts of fats and protein compared to land animals but lower compared to phocid seals. "Estimating the harvest of Pacific walrus, "An assessment of Greenland walrus populations", "Wildlife Conservation | Deer Hunting | Elk Hunting | Big Game Hunting", "Warming Arctic Is Taking a Toll, Peril to Walrus Young Seen as Result of Melting Ice Shelf", "Global warming could reverse a walrus comeback", "As Arctic Sea ice reaches annual minimum, large number of walrus corpses found", "Pacific Walrus and climate change: observations and predictions", "Group plans to sue over walrus protection", "The Folklore of Northeastern Asia, as Compared with That of Northwestern America", "The Eskimo of Baffin Land and Hudson Bay", "The use of molluscs to occupy Pacific walrusses (, "The Delights of Parsing the Beatles' Most Nonsensical Song", Biologist Tracks Walruses Forced Ashore As Ice Melts, Thousands Of Walruses Crowd Ashore Due To Melting Sea Ice, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Walrus&oldid=997415948, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, Short description is different from Wikidata, All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from September 2018, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2018, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2019, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from June 2019, Taxonbars with automatically added original combinations, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 31 December 2020, at 11:30. A female usually gives birth to a single calf once every three to four years. Growing up to 3,750 pounds, male Pacific walruses are larger than females and measure approximately 10 feet long. An occasional male of the Pacific subspecies far exceeds normal dimensions. These organisms have flabby bodies, which often spot pink or brown hue, with short fur lining most of their bodies except for their fins. [62] There have been isolated observations of walruses preying on seals up to the size of a 200 kg (440 lb) bearded seal. Walruses spend about two-thirds of their lives in the water. Breeding occurs from January to March, peaking in February. Where do walruses live? Thus they tend to live relatively long life spans of around 30 years. With sea ice receding year after year, he says, the walruses … [32], The rest of the year (late summer and fall), walruses tend to form massive aggregations of tens of thousands of individuals on rocky beaches or outcrops. 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