WALRUS EXPLAINED
#12.
SUBSPECIES OF WALRUSES The mammals come in two subspecies; Pacific
Walruses and Atlantic Walruses.
The walruses found in the Atlantic demographic are found around Canada to northern Europe.
They are in the cold oceans and significant seas and those contemporary areas.
At the same time, the Pacific Walruses are found in the coldest part of the U.S., from
around Alaska to northern Russia.
The fundamental difference is their demographic and not their behavioral traits or social
activities.
The probability of distinguishing between the two is tiny because they share the same
features and properties.
#11.
FOXE BASIN HERD Canadian Walruses, of the Atlantic Walrus
subspecies, are a mammoth herd.
The Foxe herd is the largest globally and can have 5,000 individual Walruses.
These individual Walruses often lounge in groups on the pack ice in the area.
They are very comfortable on the various polynyas in the area.
Polynyas are the open water surrounded by pack ice around frigid climates.
The Foxe Basin boasts of many such Polynyas, making it a haven for large groups of Atlantic
Walruses.
The Foxe Basin provides a safe habitat for the animals; it also gives people a chance
to catch a glimpse of them.
#10.
WALRUS ARE SOCIAL ANIMALS Walruses are not very frightening animals.
They keep to themselves and are not dangerous until you put them in danger.
They are also very interested in forming societies around themselves.
They have a civilized and planned society when they are in a herd.
Walruses congregate in large numbers and rarely find themselves in small groups.
The principle that there is power in numbers is a social value they uphold in Walrus kingdom.
In societies where there are thousands of individual Walruses, there is segregation.
Therefore, while they are in the same vicinity and stay around, the herds are divided by
gender.
The male Walruses keep their herd, which is made up of only men and females.
These gendered herds are not about who is weaker or stronger.
They are all-powerful herds under the direct leadership of the same sex.
Yet when they have to attack as a defense mechanism, they go as a group.
#9.
WALRUSES LIVE IN SHALLOW WATERS, BUT THEY SEARCH FOR FOOD IN DEEPER WATERS
A Walrus can stay up to 30 minutes in deep waters.
They can dive underwater as deep as some 90 meters and stay there if they have to.
They are the most graceful in the waters when it comes to swimming.
They swim at an average of 7km/h, which is 4.35 mph, and can be as fast as 35km/h or
21.74 mph.
With that speed, they can get the food they need in no time.
If they stay for long, it can be easy to find food, including mollusks and sea cucumbers.
That is because their sight alone does not help them.
They have poor eyesight and rely on their whiskers, called vibrissae, to identify the
food.
The vibrissae do an excellent job directing their path when they are in the murky waters.
#8.
WALRUSES CAN WITHSTAND COLD TEMPERATURES It does not sound strange if Polar citizens
can withstand the cold.
I mean, that is how they are staying in those areas, to begin with.
Yet, the Walrus withstands some of the harshest cold conditions ever.
They tend to accommodate freezing temperatures as low as -34 degrees Celsius or -31 degrees
Fahrenheit.
Walruses have layers of blubber that are stored under their skin to help insulate them from
the cold.
Therefore, when the rest of the population is experiencing extreme cold, they may be
facing only the average.
Walruses are also capable of enduring the temperature by slowing down their heartbeat.
Their heartbeat slowing makes the temperature more bearable for them, and they can live
comfortably in the Arctic.
This magical ability makes them one of the most comfortable species out in the polar
extremes. #7.
WALRUS POPULATION Walruses have an estimated population of over
250,000 individuals.
A quarter-million of the animals roaming the polar areas is not considered a small population.
The population estimation becomes even more absurd when you find that only 20,000 are
Atlantic Walruses out of this number.
The famous type, which we are likely to see in pop culture and on the internet, are the
smaller subspecies.
That means that the Pacific Walruses found around Alaska, northern Russia, and its cold
neighboring region is the more predominant Walrus population.
This is also an indication of what confused the different subspecies of Walrus.
#6.
WALRUS ARE THE KINGS OF THE ARCTIC When wildlife enthusiasts go on about Walruses,
they are one of the most outstanding animals in the Arctic.
The Walrus is a giant in the Arctic and the most significant for all research relating
to size and strength.
That is why they are cherished by everyone, including The Beetles when they sang, "I am
the Walrus."
Walruses are giant and weigh the same as a small cars.
The average adult weighs 1.5 tons or 1,360 kg.
#5.
FEMALE AND MALE WALRUS HAVE LARGE TUSK Aside from the mustache, the ultimate distinctive
thing on the Walrus, , is their large tusk.
It does not come by coincidence to them.
They need it to survive out in the cold.
Walrus tusks help them get out of the water for general use, especially when it is covered
with ice.
They use their tusk to cut through ice with ease and move when needed.
It is also a tool for defense when predators face them.
Specifically for men, they use it to defend the whole herd.
It also demonstrates a male's dominance with the size of their tusk.
While female tusks are relatively smaller, a male adult Walrus can have a tusk as long
as 3 feet.
#4.
WALRUSES LIVE UP TO 40 YEARS IN THE WILD As the elephants of the Arctic, it can be
assumed that they grow very fast.
The tag of them being elephants is not a joke.
Much like elephants, the males are larger than the females.
During mating season, they also act out with the males taking territories and displaying
dominance.
They have many similarities, but their lifespan might not tally.
The Walrus can live up to 40 years in the wild.
Their size makes them seem old, so looking the same for forty years is impressive.
Again, since they are so large, it is impressive to note that they can handle themselves until
that age.
Hunting Walruses illegally makes it easier for them to live their full glory and die
at ripe ages after living to the fullest.
#3.
WALRUSES TAKE CARE OF YOUNGER ONES Walrus babies are born after a 15-month gestation
period.
The long gestation period is attributed to a process of delayed implantation.
This delayed implantation occurs because a fertilized egg takes three to five months
to plant into the uterine wall.
The delay ensures that the mother has enough nutrients and energy to start the pregnancy
process and that the calf can be born at an appropriate environmental condition.
A walrus gives birth to one calf, although there have been twins.
A calf is born at approximately 100 pounds.
The mothers are intensely protective of their calves for the first two years.
They stay by them regardless of their strengths.
When the mother does not have another calf, the one it has can stay with the mother for
five years before it strays away.
The protection and attention are due to the length of gestation and Walrus's social behavior.
They have to stick together anyway, so why not do it at your mother's side.
#2.
WALRUSES ARE CARNIVORES We spoke of sea cucumbers as one of the delicacies
the Walrus enjoy.
While that is true, they are also carnivores like humans.
Walruses feed on the ocean bottoms.
Their whiskers, which we already mentioned, guide their food, and they whisk it quickly
into their mouths when they find it.
Walruses have 18 teeth, including the two canines that form their tusks.
With their teeth, they eat bivalves like clams and mussels.
They also like tunicates, dead whales, seals, and other fish.
Their ability to eat people of the same family is the only shocking thing about these sweet
animals.
Who are their families?
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#1.
WALRUSES ARE RELATED TO SEALS AND SEA LIONS Walruses are the relatives of sea lions and
seals.
They are classified as pinnipeds, putting them in the same family group as other sea
mammals.
They all have similar fore and hind limbs, which are flippers.
They are all well adapted for swimming and considered excellent swimmers.
Yet when they are on land, they move in weird ways.
Although Walruses are the only members of their Odobenidae family, they share family
ties with proper seals and sea lions.
Their relation explains the basis of the many things they do like, including swimming fast
and well.
They are also very protective of their offspring and like to move in herds.
These are the fascinating family resemblance of the Walrus and seals.