Isles of Scilly, England
This walrus is unsinkable—but the boats he liked to hang out on? Not so much.
Wally the walrus was far from his Arctic home when he decided to rest atop some
anchored boats. Weighing almost 2,000 pounds, he sank one craft and damaged others
before Lizzi Larbalestier from the British Divers Marine Life Rescue offered to help.
She built Wally a pontoon made of plastic bricks, then covered the floating structure
in poop and hair that he’d left behind on another boat.
“He swam straight to the pontoon and got on it like he knew it was for him,”
Larbalestier says.
Walrus expert Lori Quakenbush
thinks that Wally might’ve gotten
separated from his group by a
strong current moving south.
Walruses usually haul out, or rest,
on ice and land, not boats—so it’s
possible Wally was trying to stay
away from people. But after a few
weeks of hanging out on his pon-
toon, Wally started swimming
back toward his icy home. Bon
voyage, Wally! —Cheryl MaguireMalaMala Game Reserve,
South Africa
Who says you can’t cuddle a rhino?
Zaheer Ali was leading a safari
when he noticed a white rhinoceros
with a red-billed oxpecker bird on
its horn. He stopped to watch as the
bird plucked ticks and insects off
the rhino’s skin, which is a normal
behavior.
But then something surprising hap-
pened: The bird leaned on the rhino’s
horn and seemed to rest. “I knew this
moment was special,” Ali says.
It’s not unusual to see these two
species together, rhino conservationist
Brent Cook says. “Oxpeckers often
feed on the parasites living on the
rhino’s skin,” he says. “In exchange,
the rhino receives complimentary
pest control.”
Plus, the oxpecker—which has
much stronger eyesight—will make a
shrill hissing sound to warn the rhino
of danger from things like hyenas and
poachers.
Cook thinks that the bird had just
finished a tasty meal and felt at ease in
a warm spot. We hope these animals
stay BFFs. —Cheryl MaguireFLORIDA POW(WALLY ON BOAT); LIZZI LARBALESTIER / SWER & LIGHT COMPANY (CROCODILES); ADAMNS (WALLY ON PONTOON); ZAHEER ALI (BIRD AND RHINO) COLLINS (CLONAKILTY DISTILLER) / SWNS
CROCODILES
Homestead,
FloridaWA L R U S
Isles of Scilly,
EnglandBIRD AND
RHINO
MalaMala
Game Reserve,
South AfricaYOUR
FACE
IS SO
COMFY.‘Snuggle
s’
RhinoBird
WALLY BOARDED
BOATS ALL AROUND
EUROPE (HERE HE’S
NEAR IRELAND)
BEFORE SWIMMING
BACK TOWARD THE
ARCTIC.AHOY
THERE!Walrus Floatie
Gets
WALLY
RELAXES ON A
PONTOON BUILT
JUST FOR HIM.JUNE / JULY 2022 • NAT GEO KIDS (^11)