Thousands of Walruses Mass on Beaches: Arctic Sea Ice Gone

[FourScore]

Thousands of Walruses Mass on Beaches: Arctic Sea Ice Gone
by FishOutofWater
Tue Sep 14, 2010 at 02:23:40 PM PDT

Tens of thousands of walruses have pulled themselves out of the Arctic ocean, beaching in never-seen-before numbers on Alaskan Arctic shores. Since the great Arctic sea ice melt of 2007 walruses, unable to hunt for food from the ice, have congregated on Arctic ocean beaches at summer's end. Walruses may be on the path to extinction.

Walrus researchers with the United States Geological Survey estimate there could be anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 of the mammals currently taking a rest along Alaska's Chukchi coastline. Ferreira, one of about 234 people who call Point Lay home, thinks the numbers may be even higher. Since only about 20 percent of walruses generally come to shore, scientists suspect another 80,000 walruses may be swimming nearby.

Before the great melt of 2007, walruses didn't come ashore in massive numbers at summer's end. Mothers and pups fed on clams, worms and other marine life across a large area in the shallow waters between Alaska and Russia. Broken sea ice distributed across Alaska's Arctic waters served as resting platforms for thousands of mothers and pups.



Since 2007 walruses have beached in large numbers because the sea ice around Alaska melted.



In 2009 hundreds of beached pups died http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2009/1291/.

On September 14, 2009, we encountered substantial numbers of fresh walrus carcasses on the Alaskan shores of the Chukchi Sea near Icy Cape. We enumerated 131 carcasses using geo-referenced strip transect photography and visual counts of solitary carcasses. All appeared to be young animals based on review of aerial photographs and reference to 12 carcasses that we examined on the ground. The events that led to the death of these animals are unknown, but appear to be related to the loss of sea ice over the Chukchi Sea continental shelf. In years prior to this event, other investigators have linked walrus deaths at other Chukchi Sea coastal haulouts to trampling, exhaustion from prolonged exposure to open sea conditions, and separation of calves from their mothers.

MORE AT: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/9/14/901890/-Thousands-of-Walruses-Mass-on-Beaches:-Arctic-Sea-Ice-Gone

[another saigon]

1. k&r

:cry:

[RKP5637]

2. Only a matter of time before humans are extinct... n/t

[bread_and_roses]

3. no words....

just sorrow and despair

[Tuesday Afternoon]

4. sadly, K&R

:(

[joeybee12]

5. KNR