ABSTRACT
The walrus is the only extant species of the family Odobenidae, with two and possibly three subspecies: the Atlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus), the Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens), and the putative Laptev Sea walrus (Odobenus rosmarus laptevi). Recent work on walrus genetics suggests that the Laptev Sea walrus is most likely the westernmost population of the Pacific walrus (Lindqvist et al. 2009). An extensive review of the biology of the walrus by Fay (1982) remains the definitive work more than 30 years later. The scientific name means “red tooth walker,” the color referring to the tint of the skin due to cutaneous vasodilation that occurs when a cold animal emerges from cold arctic waters and warms in the sun. Walruses are found only in the arctic, and are highly ice-associated, although fossils and occasional live individuals have been recorded as far south as California and Spain (Fay 1982; Born et al. 2014). Their present range includes parts of the United States (Alaska), Canada, Greenland, Norway, and Russia. The walrus is listed by the IUCN as a “vulnerable” species (Lowry 2016).
