Walrus have started hauling out on shore along Alaska’s north coast. The sea ice has retreated far north of the continental shelf, leaving the animals with limited options for foraging. But only a handful of walrus have come to shore so far this year. Chad Jay is a walrus biologist with the United States Geological Survey. His team put 40 tags on walrus last month and he’s now monitoring their movements.
In late summer last year, 20,000-30,000 walrus hauled out on barrier islands a few miles from the village of Point Lay. Last year, the animals didn’t begin arriving in large numbers until late August. But with the sea ice coverage so low this summer, Jay says he’s surprised more walrus haven’t hauled out on land in Alaska.
Jay and colleagues are planning to put more radio tags on walrus near Point Lay next week. They’re tracking the animals to learn more about their foraging behavior. They want to compare how their feeding behavior changes when they’re forced to haul out on land instead of on the sea ice.
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Annie Feidt is the broadcast managing editor at Alaska Public Media. Reach her atafeidt@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Anniehere.
