Friday, October 03, 2014

Random walrus corner...

Handsome devil, isn't he?
It isn't often that walruses are in the news, so the coverage of large gatherings of walruses on the shores of Alaska has been very interesting, even if the news is somewhat troubling.
 
Climate change means that the icefloes which walruses use to raise their young and to rest between clam-digging expeditions have not formed this year, and so beaches are the only alternative. And they do so in huge groups, which seems a bit unlikely when you consider the number of likely enemies they would have onshore.
 
According to the Guardian, walruses are rather skittish - at least, as skittish as a creature weighing up to two tonnes with long, curved tusks can be.
 
Let's hope that this ends well, because whilst walruses are never going to get as much attention as pandas, whales or tigers, they are amazing creatures with personality...

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