Walrus[1]
The Pacific Walrus (O. rosmarus divergens)
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Suborder: Caniformia Superfamily: Pinnipedia Family: Odobenidae Allen, 1880 Genus: Odobenus Brisson, 1762 Species: O. The conservation status of a Species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future Least Concern ( LC) is an IUCN category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The diverse order Carnivora (kɑrˈnɪvərə or sometimes /ˌkɑrnɪˈvɔərə/ from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh" + vorāre Caniformia, or Canoidea (literally " dog-like " are a Suborder within the order Carnivora. Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising Mathurin Jacques Brisson ( 30 April 1723 &ndash 23 June 1806) was a French Zoologist and natural philosopher rosmarus
Binomial name
Odobenus rosmarus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Distribution of Walrus
Subspecies
O. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for Year 1758 ( MDCCLVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common rosmarus rosmarus O. rosmarus divergens O. rosmarus laptevi (debated)

The Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising Marine mammals are a diverse group of roughly 120 species of Mammal that are primarily Ocean -dwelling or depend on the ocean for food The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major The Subarctic is a region in the Northern Hemisphere immediately south of the true Arctic and covering much of Alaska, Canada and Northern Hemisphere is the half of a Planet that is North of the Equator —the word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' The Walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and Odobenus genus. In Biological classification, family ( Latin A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic It is subdivided into three subspecies:^[1] the Atlantic Walrus (O. In Zoology, as in other branches of Biology, subspecies is the Taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a Species. rosmarus rosmarus) found in the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Walrus (O. rosmarus divergens) found in the Pacific Ocean, and O. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions rosmarus laptevi, found in the Laptev Sea. The Laptev Sea ( Russian: мо́ре Ла́птевых is a Marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean.

The Walrus is immediately recognizable due to its prominent tusks, whiskers and great bulk. A tusk is an extremely long Incisor Tooth of certain Mammals that protrudes when the Mouth is closed Adult Pacific males can weigh up to 4,500 lb (2,041 kg),^[3] and, among pinnipeds, are exceeded in size only by the two species of elephant seals. The pound or pound-mass (abbreviation lb, lbm, or sometimes in the United States #) is a unit of Mass Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising Elephant seals are large oceangoing Mammals in the Genus Mirounga, in the Earless seal (Phocidae family. ^[4] It resides primarily in shallow oceanic shelf habitat, spending a significant proportion of its life on sea ice in pursuit of its preferred diet of benthic bivalve mollusks. The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each Continent and associated Coastal plain, which is covered during interglacial periods such The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a Body of water such as an Ocean or a Lake, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface Bivalves are Molluscs belonging to the class Bivalvia. They have two-part shells and typically both valves are symmetrical along the hinge line It is a relatively long-lived, social animal and is considered a keystone species in Arctic marine ecosystems. A keystone species is a Species that has a disproportionate effect on its environment relative to its abundance An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all plants animals and micro-organisms( Biotic factors in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical (

The Walrus has played a prominent role in the cultures of many indigenous Arctic peoples, who have hunted the Walrus for its meat, fat, skin, tusks and bone. See also Indigenous peoples This is a selected list of the world's indigenous peoples. In modern English usage meat most often refers to Animal tissue used as food mostly Skeletal muscle and associated Fat, but it may also refer Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and largely insoluble in water The skin is the outer covering of living tissue of an animal (or plant Bones are rigid organs that form part of the Endoskeleton of Vertebrates They function to move support and protect the various organs of the body produce In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Walrus was the object of heavy commercial exploitation for blubber and ivory and its numbers declined rapidly. Blubber is a thick layer of vascularized Fat found under the skin of all Cetaceans Pinnipeds and Sirenians Description Walrus tusk Ivory comes from two modified upper canines The tusks of a Pacific walrus may attain a length of one meter. Its global population has since rebounded, though the Atlantic and Laptev populations remain fragmented and at historically depressed levels.

Etymology

The origins of the word "walrus" has variously been attributed to combinations of the Dutch words walvis ("whale") and ros ("horse")^[5] or wal ("shore") and reus ("giant"). Dutch ( is a West Germanic language spoken by around 24 million people 22 million of which are from the Netherlands, Belgium and Suriname ^[6] However, the most likely origin of the word is the Old Norse hrossvalr, meaning "horse-whale", which was passed in a juxtaposed form to Dutch and the North-German dialects of the Hanseatic League as walros and Walross. Old Norse is the North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age The Hanseatic League (also known as the Hansa) was an alliance of trading cities and their Guilds that established and maintained trade ^[7]

The now archaic English word for walrus morse is widely supposed to have come from the Slavic. The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) a group of closely related Languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages ^[8] Thus морж (morž) in Russian, mors in Polish, also mursu in Finnish, moršâ in Saami, later morse in French, morsa in Spanish, etc. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Finnic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people

The compound Odobenus comes from odous (Greek for "tooth") and baino (Greek for "walk"), based on observations of walruses using their tusks to pull themselves out of the water. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Divergens in Latin means "turning apart", referring to the tusks. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome.

Taxonomy and evolution

The Walrus is a mammal in the order Carnivora. This article is about the taxonomic rank for the sequence of species in a taxonomic list see Taxonomic order In scientific classification used The diverse order Carnivora (kɑrˈnɪvərə or sometimes /ˌkɑrnɪˈvɔərə/ from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh" + vorāre It is the sole surviving members of the family Odobenidae, one of three lineages in the suborder Pinnipedia along with true seals (Phocidae), and eared seals (Otariidae). In Biological classification, family ( Latin This article is about the taxonomic rank for the sequence of species in a taxonomic list see Taxonomic order In scientific classification used Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising The true seals or earless seals are one of the three main groups of Mammals within the seal Suborder, Pinnipedia. The eared seals or otariids are Marine mammals in the family Otariidae - one of three groupings of Pinnipeds. While there has been some debate as to whether all three lineages are monophyletic, i. A clade is a taxonomic group comprising a single Common ancestor and all the descendants of that ancestor e. descended from a single ancestor, or diphyletic, recent genetic evidence suggests that all three descended from a Caniform ancestor most closely related to modern bears. In Phylogenetics, a group of organisms is said to be paraphyletic if the group contains its most recent common ancestor but does not contain all Caniformia, or Canoidea (literally " dog-like " are a Suborder within the order Carnivora. ^[9] There remains uncertainty as to whether the odobenids diverged from the otariids before or after the phocids,^[9] though the most recent synthesis of the molecular data suggests that the phocids were the first to diverge. ^[10] What is known, however, is that Odobenidae was once a highly diverse and widespread family, including at least twenty known species in the Imagotariinae, Dusignathinae and Odobeninae subfamilies. ^[11] The key distinguishing feature was the development of a squirt/suction feeding mechanism; tusks are a later feature specific to Odobeninae, of which the modern walrus is the last remaining (relict) species. The term relict is used to refer to surviving remnants of natural phenomena

Two subspecies of the Walrus are commonly recognized: the Atlantic Walrus, O. r. rosmarus (Illiger, 1815) and the Pacific Walrus, O. r. divergens (Linnaeus, 1758). Fixed genetic differences between the Atlantic and Pacific subspecies indicate very restricted gene flow, but relatively recent separation, estimated to have occurred 500,000 and 785,000 years ago. ^[12] These dates coincide with the fossil derived hypothesis that the Walrus evolved from a tropical or sub-tropical ancestor that became isolated in the Atlantic Ocean and gradually adapted to colder conditions in the Arctic. ^[12] From there, it presumably re-colonized the North Pacific during high glaciation periods in the Pleistocene via the Central American Seaway. The Pleistocene ('plaɪstəsin is the epoch from 18 million to 10000 years BP covering the world's recent period The Central American Seaway, also called the Panamanic Seaway or Inter-American Seaway was an ancient body of water that once separated North America ^[10] A third, isolated population of the Walrus in the Laptev Sea is considered by some, including Russian biologists and the canonical Mammal Species of the World,^[1] to be a third subspecies, O. The Laptev Sea ( Russian: мо́ре Ла́птевых is a Marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. r. laptevi (Chapskii, 1940), when it was described and is managed as such in Russia. ^[13] Where the subspecies separation is not accepted, there remains debate as to whether it should be considered a subpopulation of the Atlantic or Pacific subspecies. ^[14][4]

Range and population

Walrus colony

There were roughly 200,000 Pacific Walruses according to the last census-based estimation in 1990. ^[15][16] the majority of the Pacific Walrus population spends the summer north of the Bering Strait in the Chukchi Sea along the north shore of eastern Siberia, around Wrangel Island, in the Beaufort Sea along the north shore of Alaska, and in the waters between those locations. The Bering Strait (Берингов пролив Beringov proliv) is a sea Strait between Cape Dezhnev, Russia, the easternmost point (169°43' Chukchi Sea (Чуко́тское мо́ре is a Marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Wrangel Island (о́стров Вра́нгеля ostrov Vrangelya) is an Island in the Arctic Ocean, between the Chukchi Sea and East Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent Smaller numbers of males summer in the Gulf of Anadyr on the south shore of the Chukchi Peninsula of Siberia and in Bristol Bay off the south shore of southern Alaska west of the Alaska Peninsula. The Gulf of Anadyr, or Anadyr Bay (Анадырский залив is a gulf in the extreme northeast of Siberia, Russia. The Chukchi Peninsula, Chukotski Peninsula or Chukotsk Peninsula ( Russian: Чукотский полуостров at about 66° N 172° W is the northeastern The Alaska Peninsula is a Peninsula extending about 800 km (500 miles to the southwest from the mainland of Alaska and ending in the Aleutian Islands. In the spring and fall they congregate throughout the Bering Strait, reaching from the west shores of Alaska to the Gulf of Anadyr. They winter to the south in the Bering Sea along the eastern shore of Siberia south to the northern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula, and along the southern shore of Alaska. ^[4] A 28,000 year old fossil Walrus specimen was dredged out of the San Francisco Bay, indicating that the Pacific Walrus ranged as far south as Northern California during the last ice age. San Francisco Bay is a shallow productive Estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento "Last glacial" redirects here For the period of maximum glacier extent during this time see Last Glacial Maximum The last glacial period ^[17]

The Atlantic Walrus, which was nearly decimated by commercial harvest, is much smaller. Good estimates are difficult to obtain, but the total number is probably below 20,000. ^[18][19] It ranges from the Canadian Arctic, Greenland, Svalbard and the western portion of the Russian Arctic. Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat meaning "Land of the Greenlanders" Grønland is a self-governing Danish Province located between the Svalbard is an Archipelago in the Arctic Ocean north of mainland Europe, about midway between Norway and the North Pole. There are eight presumed sub-populations of the Atlantic Walrus based largely on geographical distribution and movement data, five to the west and three to the east of Greenland. ^[20] The Atlantic Walrus once enjoyed a range that extended south to Cape Cod and occurred in large numbers in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Cape Cod (or simply the Cape to most New Englanders is a Peninsula nearly coextensive with Barnstable County Massachusetts and forming the easternmost Gulf of Saint Lawrence (French golfe du Saint-Laurent) the world's largest Estuary, is the outlet of North America's Great Lakes via the Saint In April 2006, the Canadian Species at Risk Act listed the Northwest Atlantic Walrus population (Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador) as being extirpated in Canada. Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk New Brunswick ( French: Nouveau-Brunswick /nuvobʁɔnzwik/ is one of Canada 's three Maritime provinces and is the only constitutionally Nova Scotia (ˌnəʊvəˈskəʊʃə ( Latin for New Scotland; Alba Nuadh Nouvelle-Écosse is a Canadian province located on Canada 's Newfoundland and Labrador (ˈnuːfɨn(dlənd ən(d ˈlæbrəˌdɔr (Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador is a province of Canada, the tenth and latest to join the Confederation Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page ^[21]

The isolated Laptev population is confined year-round to the central and western regions of the Laptev Sea, the easternmost regions of the Kara Sea, and the westernmost regions of the East Siberian Sea. The Kara Sea ( Russian: Ка́рское мо́ре is part of the Arctic Ocean north of Siberia. The East Siberian Sea ( Russian: ru Восто́чно-Сиби́рское мо́ре is a Marginal sea in the Arctic Ocean. Current populations are estimated to be between 5,000 and 10,000 individuals. ^[22]

Description

Young male Pacific Walruses on Cape Pierce in Alaska. Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent Note the variation in the curvature and orientation of the tusks and the bumpy skin (bosses), typical of males.

Walrus using tusks to hang on breathing hole in the ice near St. Lawrence Island, Bering Sea. St Lawrence Island is located west of mainland Alaska in the Bering Sea, just south of the Bering Strait, at about 64° North 170° 1928' West

Skeleton

While isolated Pacific males can weigh as much as 2,000 kg (4,409 lb), most weigh between 800 kg (1,764 lb) and 1,800 kg (3,968 lb). Females weigh about two thirds as much as males, and the Atlantic subspecies is about 90% as massive as the Pacific subspecies. ^[4] The Atlantic Walrus also tends to have relatively shorter tusks and somewhat more flattened snouts. A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face consisting of its nose mouth and jaw The body shape of the Walrus is in several ways intermediate between that of eared seals (Otariidae) and true seals (Phocidae). The eared seals or otariids are Marine mammals in the family Otariidae - one of three groupings of Pinnipeds. The true seals or earless seals are one of the three main groups of Mammals within the seal Suborder, Pinnipedia. As with otariids, it has a prominent thick neck and the ability to turn its rear flippers forward and move on all fours; however, its swimming technique is more similar to that of true seals, relying less on flippers and more on sinuous whole body movements. ^[4] Like phocids, it also lacks external ears.

The most prominent physical feature of the Walrus is its long tusks, actually elongated canines, which are present in both sexes and can reach a length of 1 m (3 ft) and 5. "Cuspid" redirects here For the heart valves see Bicuspid valve and Tricuspid valve. The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit 4 kg (12 lb). ^[23] These are slightly longer and thicker among males, who use them for fighting, dominance and display; the strongest males with the largest tusks typically dominating social groups. Tusks are also used to form and maintain holes in the ice and haul out onto ice. ^[24] It was previously assumed that tusks were used to dig out prey items from the seabed, but analyses of abrasion patterns on the tusks indicate that they are dragged through the sediment while the upper edge of the snout is used for digging. ^[25] The Walrus has relatively few teeth other than the great canine tusks, and typically has a dental formula of:

Surrounding the tusks is a broad mat of stiff bristles ('mystacial vibrissae'), giving the Walrus a characteristic whiskered appearance. There can be 400 to 700 vibrissae in 13 to 15 rows reaching 30 cm (12 in) in length, though in the wild they are often worn to a much shorter length due to constant use in foraging. ^[26] The vibrissae are attached to muscles and are supplied with blood and nerves making the vibrissal array a highly sensitive organ capable of differentiating shapes 0. 3 cm (0. 12 in) thick and 0. 2 cm (0. 08 in) wide. ^[26]

Aside from the vibrissae, the Walrus is sparsely covered with fur and appears bald. Its skin is highly wrinkled and thick, up to 10 cm (4 in) around the neck and shoulders of males. The blubber layer beneath is up to 15 cm (6 in) thick. Blubber is a thick layer of vascularized Fat found under the skin of all Cetaceans Pinnipeds and Sirenians Description Young walruses are deep brown and grow paler and more cinnamon colored as they age. Old males, in particular, become nearly pink. Because the blood vessels in the skin constrict in cold water, the Walrus can appear almost white when swimming. As a secondary sexual characteristic, males also acquire significant nodules, called bosses, particularly around the neck and shoulders. Secondary sex characteristics are traits that distinguish the two Sexes of a species but that are not directly part of the Reproductive system. ^[24]

The Walrus has an air sac under its throat which acts like a flotation bubble and allows the Walrus to bob vertically in the water and sleep. The males possess a large baculum (penis bone), up to 63 cm (25 in) in length, the largest of any mammal both absolutely and relative to body size. The baculum (also penis bone, penile bone or os penis) is a Bone found in the Penis of most Mammals It is absent ^[4]

Life cycle

Walruses fighting

The Walrus lives around 50 years. The males reach sexual maturity as early as 7 years, but do not typically mate until fully developed around 15 years of age. They go into a rut in January through April, decreasing their food intake dramatically. The females can begin ovulating as soon as 4–6 years old. The females are polyestrous, coming into heat in late summer and also around February, yet the males are only fertile around February; the potential fertility of this second period of estrous is unknown. Breeding occurs from January to March with peak conception in February. Males aggregate in the water around ice-bound groups of estrous females and engage in competitive vocal displays. ^[27] The females join them and copulation occurs in the water. ^[24]

Total gestation lasts 15 to 16 months, though 3 to 4 of those months are spent with the blastula in suspended development before finally implanting itself in the placenta. Gestation is the carrying of an Embryo or Fetus inside a Female Viviparous Animal. The blastula is an early stage of Embryonic development in Animals It is also called blastosphere This strategy of delayed implantation, common among other pinnipeds, presumably evolved to optimize both the season when females select their mates and the season when the birth itself occurs, determined by ecological conditions that promote survival of the young. Embryonic diapause or Delayed implantation is a reproductive strategy used by close to 100 different Mammals in seven different orders. ^[28] The calves are born during the spring migration from April to June. They weigh 45 kg (99 lb) to 75 kg (165 lb) at birth and are able to swim. The mothers nurse for over a year before weaning, but the young can spend up to 3 to 5 years with the mothers. ^[24] Because ovulation is suppressed until the calf is weaned, females give birth at most once every two years, resulting in the Walrus having the lowest reproductive rate of any pinniped. ^[29]

In the non-reproductive season (late summer and fall) the Walrus tends to migrate away from the ice and form massive aggregations of tens of thousands of individuals on rocky beaches or outcrops. The nature of the migration between the reproductive period and the summer period can be a rather long distance and dramatic. In late spring and summer, for example, several hundred thousand Pacific Walruses migrate from the Bering sea into the Chukchi sea through the relatively narrow Bering Strait. The Bering Strait (Берингов пролив Beringov proliv) is a sea Strait between Cape Dezhnev, Russia, the easternmost point (169°43' ^[24]

Feeding

Vibrissae of captive walrus (Japan)

Walruses leaving the water

The Walrus prefers shallow shelf regions and forages on the sea bottom. Its dives are not particularly deep compared to other pinnipeds; the deepest recorded dives are around 80 m (262 ft). However, it can remain submerged for as long as a half hour. ^[30]

The Walrus has a highly diverse and opportunistic diet, feeding on more than 60 genera of marine organisms including shrimps, crabs, tube worms, soft corals, tunicates, sea cucumbers, various mollusks, and even parts of other pinnipeds. True shrimp are swimming decapod Crustaceans classified in the Infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh Crabs are decapod Crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (βραχύ / brachy Corals are Marine organisms from the class Anthozoa and exist as small Sea anemone –like Polyps typically in colonies of many Tunicate, also known as urochordata, tunicata (and by the common names of urochordates, sea squirts, and sea pork) is the The sea cucumber (also known as trepang, bêche-de-mer, or ambiguously Sea slug) is an Echinoderm of the class Holothuroidea Molluscs are animals belonging to the phylum Mollusca. There are around 250000 extant Species within the phylum with an estimated 70000 ^[31] However, it displays great preference for benthic bivalve mollusks, especially species of clams, for which it forages by grazing along the sea bottom, searching and identifying prey with its sensitive vibrissae and clearing the murky bottoms with jets of water and active flipper movements. Clam is a word which can be used for all some or only a few Species of Bivalve Mollusks the word is a Common name which has ^[32] The Walrus sucks the meat out by sealing the organism in the powerful lips and drawing the tongue, piston-like, rapidly into the mouth, creating a vacuum. The Walrus palate is uniquely vaulted, allowing for extremely effective suction to be generated by the tongue.

Aside from the large numbers of organisms actually consumed by the Walrus, it has a large peripheral impact on the benthic communities while foraging. 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. In Oceanography and Limnology, bioturbation is the displacement and mixing of Sediment particles by benthic Fauna (animals or ^[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 debated. ^[33] There have been rare documented incidents of predation on seabirds, particularly the Brünnich's Guillemot Uria lomvia. The Thick-billed Murre or Brünnich's Guillemot ( Uria lomvia) is a Bird in the Auk family (Alcidae ^[34]

Due to its great size, the Walrus has only two natural predators: the Orca and the Polar Bear. The Orca or Killer Whale ( Orcinus orca) less commonly Blackfish or Seawolf, is the largest species of the Oceanic dolphin family The polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) is a Bear native to the Arctic Ocean and its surrounding seas It does not, however, comprise a significant component of either predator's diet. The Polar Bear hunts the Walrus by rushing at beached aggregations and consuming those individuals that are crushed or wounded in the sudden mass exodus, typically younger or infirm animals. ^[35] However, even an injured Walrus is a formidable opponent for a Polar Bear, and direct attacks are rare.

Exploitation and status

Siberian Yupik woman holding Walrus tusks. Siberian Yupiks, or Yuits are indigenous people who reside along the coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in the far northeast of the Russian Federation and

Walrus tusk engraving made by Chukchi artisans depicting polar bears attacking walruses. Chukchi, or Chukchee (чукчи ( plural) ru чукча ( singular) are an Indigenous people inhabiting the Chukchi Peninsula On display in the Magadan Regional Museum, Magadan, Russia. Magadan (Магада́н is a Port town on the Sea of Okhotsk and gateway to the Kolyma region

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 population. Sealing redirects here for other uses see Sealing (disambiguation. Whaling is the hunting of Whales and dates back to at least 6000 BC ^[36] Commercial harvest of the Walrus is now outlawed throughout its range, though a traditional subsistence hunt continues among Chukchi, Yupik and Inuit peoples. Chukchi, or Chukchee (чукчи ( plural) ru чукча ( singular) are an Indigenous people inhabiting the Chukchi Peninsula The Yupik or in the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik, are a group of indigenous or aboriginal peoples of western southwestern and southcentral Inuit (plural the singular Inuk, means "man" or "person" is a general term for a group of culturally similar Indigenous peoples inhabiting ^[37] The Walrus hunt occurs towards the end of the summer. Traditionally, all parts of the walrus was used. ^[38] The meat, often preserved, is an important source of nutrition through the winter; the flippers are fermented and stored as a delicacy until spring; tusks and bone were historically used for tools as well as material for handicrafts; the oil was rendered for warmth and light; the tough hide is used for rope and house and boat coverings; the intestines and gut linings are used for making waterproof parkas; etc. While some of these uses have faded with access to alternative technologies, walrus meat remains an important part of local diets,^[39] and tusk carving and engraving remain a vital art form among many communities.

Walrus hunts are regulated by resource managers in Russia, the U.S., Canada and Denmark and representatives of the respective Walrus hunting communities. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe An estimated four to seven thousand Pacific Walruses are harvested in Alaska and Russia, including a significant portion (approx. 42%) of struck and lost animals. ^[40] Several hundred are removed annually around Greenland. ^[41] The sustainability of these levels of harvest are difficult to determine since there is considerable uncertainty in the population estimates themselves and in the population parameters such as fecundity and mortality. Fecundity, derived from the word fecund, generally refers to the ability to Reproduce. Mortality rate is a measure of the number of Deaths (in general or due to a specific cause in some population scaled to the size of that population per unit time

The effects of global climate change on the Walrus populations is another element of concern. Climate change is any long-term significant change in the “average weather” that a given region experiences In particular, there have been well-documented reductions on the extent and thickness of the pack ice which the Walrus relies on as a substrate for giving birth and aggregating in the reproductive period. It is hypothesized that thinner pack ice over the Bering Sea has reduced the amount of suitable resting habitat near optimal feeding grounds. This causes greater separation of lactating females from their calves leading to nutritional stress for the young or lower reproductive rates for the females. ^[42] However, there is as yet little data to make reliable predictions on the impacts of changing climate conditions on total population trends.

Currently, two of the three Walrus subspecies are listed as "least-concern" by the IUCN, while the third is "data deficient". ^[2] The Pacific Walrus is not listed as "depleted" according to the Marine Mammal Protection Act nor as "threatened" or "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act. The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 prohibits with certain exceptions the taking of Marine mammals in United States waters and by U The Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( et seq or ESA is the most wide-ranging of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s The Russian Atlantic and Laptev Sea populations are classified as Category 2 (decreasing) and Category 3 (rare) in the Russian Red Book. Red Data Book of the Russian Federation ( RDBRF) also known as Red Book (Красная книга or Russian Red Data Book is a state document established ^[43] Global trade in Walrus ivory is restricted according to a CITES Appendix 3 listing. Walrus tusk Ivory comes from two modified upper canines The tusks of a Pacific walrus may attain a length of one meter. CITES (the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments drafted

Folklore and culture

Walrus Ivory masks made by Yupik in Alaska. The Yupik or in the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik, are a group of indigenous or aboriginal peoples of western southwestern and southcentral Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent

John Tenniel's illustration for Lewis Carroll's poem The Walrus and the Carpenter

The Walrus plays an important role in the religion and folklore of many Arctic peoples. Sir John Tenniel (28 February 1820 &ndash 25 February 1914 was an English Illustrator. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English REDIRECT The Walrus and the Carpenter History The concept of folklore developed as part of the 19th century ideology of Romantic nationalism, leading to the reshaping of oral traditions to serve modern ideological The skin and bones are used in some ceremonies and the animal itself appears frequently in legends. For example, in a Chukchi version of the widespread myth of the Raven, in which Raven recovers the sun and the moon from an evil spirit by seducing his daughter, the angry father throws the daughter from a high cliff and, as she drops into the water, she turns into a Walrus - possibly the original Walrus. Ravens are common characters in the traditional narratives and Mythology around the world notably a part of North American, Siberian, and Kutkh (also Kutkha, Kootkha, Kutq and variants Кутх is a Raven spirit traditionally revered in various forms by various indigenous According to various versions, the tusks are formed either by the trails of mucus from the weeping girl or her long braids. ^[44] 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. In Inuit mythology, Sedna ( Inuktitut Sanna, ᓴᓐᓇ is a Deity and god of the marine animals especially mammals such as seals Both in Chukotka and Alaska, the aurora borealis is believed to be a special world inhabited by those who died by violence, the changing rays representing deceased souls playing ball with a Walrus head. ^[44][45]

Because of its distinctive appearance and immediately recognizable whiskers and tusks, the Walrus also appears in the popular cultures of peoples with little immediate experience with the animal, most often in children's literature. Perhaps its best known appearance is in Lewis Carroll's whimsical poem The Walrus and the Carpenter that appears in his book Through the Looking-Glass (1871). Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English REDIRECT The Walrus and the Carpenter Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There ( 1871) is a work of Children's literature by Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson In the poem, the eponymous anti-heroes use trickery to consume a great number of oysters. The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water. Although Carroll accurately portrays the biological Walrus's appetite for bivalve mollusks, oysters do not naturally occur within the Arctic and sub-Arctic range of the Walrus.

The Walrus from Lewis Carroll's poem was the inspriation for The Beatles song I Am the Walrus, written by John Lennon. The Beatles were a pop and rock band from Liverpool, England formed in 1960 " I Am the Walrus " is a 1967 song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon/McCartney. John Winston Ono Lennon, MBE (born Lennon referred to the song, and the Walrus, in two other songs, Glass Onion and God. Glass onions were large hand blown Glass Bottles used aboard Sailing ships to hold Wine or Brandy. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Paul McCartney is dressed as a Walrus on the cover of The Beatles' album on which I am the Walrus appears, Magical Mystery Tour, while Lennon himself appeared in Walrus drag in the film of the song that appears in the Magical Mystery Tour movie. Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942 is an English rock Singer, Bass guitarist songwriter Composer, Magical Mystery Tour is the name of the 11-song Album and six-song Double EP by the English rock band The Beatles, first Magical Mystery Tour is an hour-long television film starring The Beatles ( John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison At the time the song appeared, and years before Lennon himself explained that the Carroll poem was the genesis of the song, there was speculation on what the Walrus symbolized in The Beatles song. During the "Paul is Dead" imbroglio, journalist John Neary, the author of the cover story "The Magical McCartney Mystery" in LIFE Magazine's November 7, 1969 issue, incorrectly claimed that the "black walrus was a folk symbol of death. " Paul is dead" is an Urban legend alleging that Paul McCartney of the British rock band The Beatles died in 1966 and "^[46]

Other examples of appearance of the animal in the popular culture include The Jungle Book story by Rudyard Kipling, 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" who tells the white seal Kotick where to seek advice for his mission. The Jungle Book (1894 is a collection of stories written by Rudyard Kipling. Joseph Rudyard Kipling (30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936 was an English Author and poet

See also

• Arctic ecology
• Imagotaria downsi

References

• Marine Mammal Medicine, Leslie Dierauf and Frances Gulland, CRC Press 2001, ISBN 0-8493-0839-9
• Annales des sciences naturelles. Zoologie et biologie animale. Paris, Masson. ser. 10:t. 7
• Tagging and tracking Atlantic walrus (BBC Walrus tracker).