Australian Science Illustrated — Issue 54 2017

scienceillustrated.com.au | 9

Seen from above, a group of walruses is an

inchoate mass of blubber and tusks. Walruses

are social animals, who need physical contact, helping

them keep warm and feel safe. Even when it is warm

and there is plenty of space, the creatures prefer to

pack in like extremely large, mammalian sardines.

Reserving dry land for mating and raising young in the

spring, they can spend weeks out at sea, resting on ice

floes. Once an unusual sight in Southern Alaska, rising

temperatures in the far north mean less water covered

in ice, and instead more beaches covered in walrus.

Is This the World's

Toothiest Mattress?

Photo // Rick Beldegreen

BARCROFT IMAGES/ALL OVER