A toothed walrus spotted off the coast of an Irish island on Sunday could have arrived there after falling asleep on the iceberg in the North Pole, a marine biologist said.
Kevin Flannery, director of Oceanworld Aquarium in Dingle, Kerry, told the Irish Independent the animal was possibly carried across the Atlantic Ocean before reaching the rocks on Valentia Island.
‘I would say what happened was that he fell asleep on an iceberg and ran away, and that he was then too far away, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean or somewhere in the vicinity of Greenland, he said. “This is usually what happens … they fall asleep on an iceberg and are carried away from the North Pole.”
In a Facebook comment, the aquarium says that the iceberg may have melted from the Greenland ice shelf and left the walrus in the Gulf Stream.
Walrus footage was captured by Valentia Island resident Alan Houlihan, who said his 5-year-old daughter first spotted the animal on the shoreline when they walked along Glanleam Beach on Sunday.
Houlihan said: ‘At first I thought it was a seal and then we saw the teeth. He jumped on the rocks. He was massive. He was about as big as a bull or a cow, very similar in size, he was big, big. ‘
One video showed the walrus arriving on the rocks, and the other one on its side as it placed one of the flags over its eyes.
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The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, a conservation organization, said on Facebook that Houlihan estimates the walrus is at least 6.5 feet long.
It is said: ‘Given the size … and the presence of canines, we can say with confidence that it is a sample for young adults, but it is not possible to determine sex, as men and women have canines. ‘
According to the group, previous walrus sightings were on April 3, 1999 near Clew Bay in County Mayo and on October 5, 2004 at the same location.
It is said that a walrus is depicted on the Danish coast in February and that the comparisons between the pictures ‘open up the possibility’ that it may be the same animal.
The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group said: ‘We will ask members of the public who are lucky enough to see that they are observing this wayward traveler at a safe distance and giving him the space he needs.’
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Although the health of the walrus was not clear, Oceanworld Aquarium also said on Facebook that the sighting is rare in the region.
It is said: “Their normal range is much further north around northern Russia and Greenland. This is not the first time that a rogue walrus has been found venturing further south. [but] this is a very, very rare occasion. ‘
Flannery said the public should give it space and added: ‘He sleeps on the rocks. I ask people to let him rest until he’s back.
‘I would say he came from the Atlantic. It’s thousands of miles away. If he hopes to regain his strength, he will return. ‘
Additional video footage of the walrus has been posted on social media over the past day. One recent Facebook update indicates that the animal has now moved from its original position on the shore.
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The WWF, a global conservation organization, says on its website that the walrus species is a “keystone species in Arctic marine ecosystems.”
“Walruses migrate with the moving ice levels, but never venture far from the shore because they feed in shallow water,” it says. “They can swim to a depth of about 100 meters (328 feet) to feed molluscs and other invertebrates, but on average do not go much deeper than 20-30 meters (66-98 feet).”
Alan O Sullivan