Name
- English: Atlantic walrus
- Latin: O. rosmarus rosmarus
- Dutch: Atlantische walrus
Family
Atlantic walrus
→ Walruses
| In average | Males | Females | Pups | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Length in meters | 3,00 | 2,50 | 1,40 | |
| Weight in kilogram | 1.2000 | 750 | 50 | |
| Life expectancy in years | 40 | |||
| Number of animals nowadays | 100.000 | |||
| Colour(s) | Cinnamon brown | |||
| Habitat | Atlantic and Pacific Oceans near pack ice |
Additional information
Warlruses are the smallest family of pinnipeds. They have some things in common with both true seals and eared seals . Like true seals walruses have no visible ear flaps and use their hind flippers to swim, bit like eared seals they can turn their hind flippers forward for locomotion on land. The walrus has a cinnamon brown colour, which gets lighter as the animals grow older and when they come right out of the water (when they are cold). Walruses have a well-rounded head. In contrast to all other pinnipeds they have two large tusks in their upper jaw. They have a small tail, which is almost invisible as it is hidden in a skin crease. The Atlantic walrus is slightly smaller then its brother the Pacific walrus . On their snout walruses have 400 up to 700 vibrissae (whiskers) in 13 or 15 rows. The vibrissae are attached to muscles and are supplied with blood and nerves.
The walrus moves its snout through the bottom sediment and uses his vibrissae to find food. The tusks are not used for draggin up prey, allthough the walrus digs them in the sea bottom sediment. The walrus also takes mouthfuls of water and squirts powerful jets at the sea floor to excavate burrowing invertebrates. Bivalve mollusks, such as clams, are the walrus' preferable food, but also other invertebrates including worms, snails, squids and crabs belong to its daily meal.
Walruses live in arctic areas where the temperatures are between -15 and +5 degrees Celcius. They spent about 65 percent of their lifetime in the water. Their fat thick layer, called blubber, can be up to 15 centimeters. The blubber insulates the body from the cold. During the winter the walrus' blubber can be up to one third part of its body mass.
Walruses haul out, rest and bear their young on snow-covered pack ice or ice floes, but they also haul out on small rocky island when ice is not present. Walruses are gregarious animals and haul out in herds most of the time.
In total there are about 300.000 walruses, including both the Atlantic walrus and the Pacific walrus .
The walrus' predators are killer whales and polar bears.