Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) www.ross.no These clumsy and fat mammals on land are amazingly fast and agile in the ocean! This encounter by the Seven Islands, Svalbard is from a zodiac, and they swam towards us to check us out as if this was a strange and much larger than usual member of their species. They even swam underneath the zodiac, but never did they try to intimidate or seemed nervous by our presence. They are so large and powerful that even the polar bear will not attack a healthy walrus, unless a young is all alone. The tusks powered by their bulk (up to 2,000 kg) is enough to kill a polar bear (up to 700 kg). It was hard to keep track and shoot, as they popped up in new places like whack-a-moles! As with most wildlife, humans hunted this species almost to extinction, but is now growing steadily in numbers due to several decades of protection. This picture is also a great example of this as you see three different age groups – a sign of reproduction. Despite this, the walrus is still a vulnerable species.
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