Melting sea ice due to climate change isn’t just a problem for people living in coastal regions that are slowly being flooded. It threatens the survival of species like walruses, which are uniquely dependent on the disappearing frozen environment. As we burn fossil fuels, trapping heat that melts polar ice, the roly poly pinnipeds struggle to find sea ice to live upon. Additionally as the ocean becomes more acidic because of human activity, it makes it difficult for walrus prey like crabs, clams and sea snails to build their shells.
Wildlife biologist Dr. Devin Johnson of the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Marine Mammals Management Walrus Program isn’t entirely pessimistic regarding the plight of these animals. He has fond recollections of interacting with the Atlantic (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) and Pacific (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) walruses that inhabit the area.
