IIt could have been the incongruity of the walrus that appeared on the Welsh coast. Or maybe it was the discovery that the creature appeared to be on a tour of the British and Irish islands while the human population remained stranded, its own chances of an alien escape diminishing daily. Perhaps it was simply a sense of connection: the lost, harsh beast, the reflection of a nation at sea in the middle of the waves of Covid.
Whatever the reason, the juvenile Atlantic walrus seen off the coast of Pembrokeshire has become a celebrity, with some suggesting that it should be called “Wally”.
“It probably comes from either the east coast of Greenland or Svalbard, one of these stocks,” said Lucy Babey, head of science and conservation at the Orca marine conservation charity.
Babey said that although he was not yet sure if the walrus spotted in Wales was the same mammal that had been seen a week earlier on the rocks in County Kerry, Ireland, it probably is.
But the Irish Whale and Dolphin group says it’s a match. “IWDG can confirm that it is the same animal due to the white markings on the left pinball machine and the length of the columns”, they posted on Twitter, adding that it would mean that the walrus traveled 450 km (280 miles) in six days.
Why a walrus got so far south remains a mystery. While some suggest the animal may have floated on ice, Babey said the animal may have simply been looking for food or being disturbed, for example by noise, and sent the course.
It is not the first walrus to appear unexpectedly – although sightings around the British and Irish islands are rare. “Since 1979, there have been eight confirmed observations of walrus in Ireland,” Babey said, adding that they also appeared in Scotland. “There was one in 2018 that was seen up there on various islands, traveling for about a few months.”
But while the penguins found on the beaches of Brazil were transported by air to colder waters, Babey said it would not be wise to try such a mission with a walrus, noting that the animal is huge and should be sedated from cause of stress, such a procedure would be the cause. “What has happened in the past is just watching them and the animals are gone – so you’re hoping to swim and find the right place,” she said.
Richard Sabin, the chief curator of mammals at the Natural History Museum, said walruses were not the only Arctic animals found on a strange trip: in 1949, two narwhals were found in the Thames, often called sea unicorns. Medway, while in 2018 a beluga whale came out of Gravesend in Kent.
The beluga whale “is an arctic species that, like walruses, has a fairly wide diet and, like walruses, will tend to go where the food is,” he said.
Chiara Giulia Bertulli, an observation officer at the Sea Watch Foundation, added that the beluga and bowhead whales are two Arctic species that have appeared in the national charity observation database, the latter being reported in 2015 around the Isles of Scilly and again in 2016, this free time from Mount’s Bay in Cornwall and Carlingford Lough in Ireland.
Since then, bowed whales have been reported off the coasts of some countries, including France, Belgium and the Netherlands. “European observations could all represent the same lone individual,” Bertulli said.
Sabin said: “An increase in the size of the population due to the absence of commercial exploitation could be one of the reasons why we see these animals appear outside their usual area.”
He added that the cases of Arctic visitors should be closely monitored, noting that they do not appear to be becoming more frequent in themselves, although observations could now be reported more frequently due to the increase in formal observational surveys. However, he said they should enjoy it too – albeit by far.
Babey agreed, noting that the young walrus seen in Wales was the size of a cow.
“Don’t go near the animal. Keep a very safe distance. They are very, very sensitive, “she said. “This animal will be quite exhausted from all its swimming. He will probably be stressed because he is not in an environment with which he is accustomed. ”