WALRUS: THE SENSITIVE GIANT IN THE ERA OF CLIMATE CHANGE: CLIMATIC ADAPTATION AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

There is no doubt that the cryosphere is changing, the planet's temperature is increasing and ice is retreating. Earth is gradually experiencing the repercussions of global warming which are most visible at high latitudes, and especially in the Arctic, the home of Odobenus Rosmarus or simply Walrus. The walrus is one of the most ice-dependent species. Walruses use sea ice for crucial behaviours like giving birth, feeding and resting. As the seasonal dynamics of ice cover on arctic seas change, walruses tend to congregate on coasts without ice. Thanks to this adaptation of walruses to different climate trends they have successfully survived and conserved their populations. Its adaptability has been the driving force behind preventing the walrus from being listed as an endangered species. Some scientists are attributing this trend to a normal adaptive behaviour of the mammal, while others already have noticed a risk violently posed by climate change. This article is motivated by the announcement of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that the walruses were unlikely to be considered endangered in the foreseeable future, addresses the vulnerability of walruses to climate change, explaining their dependence on sea ice and the need for reconsideration of the above statement.