Walruses are the largest pinniped animals of the northern hemisphere of our planet. Only elephant seals living in the southern hemisphere of the Earth can challenge their primacy. A distinctive feature of these mammals are, of course, their long fangs, which eventually turned into tusks. What are walrus tusks for? We will try to answer this question in our article.
Who are walruses?
These are representatives of the mammalian class living in the seas of the Arctic, which represent the only modern species belonging to the family of the same name - Walrus. Systematically walruses belong to the group of pinnipeds. Adults are easily recognizable by their outstanding long tusks. It is a mistake to believe that these are independent fangs. This is not entirely true, because the upper walrus canine has changed over time not only its shape, but also its purpose: it has become a real tusk. But we will talk about this a little later.
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Before explaining why walrus tusks are needed, this species of pinniped heavyweights should be considered in detail. Walruses are large marine pinniped animals with fairly thick skin covered with short yellow-brown hair. Its thickness can sometimes exceed 5 centimeters. With age, hair falls off. In older individuals, the skin is almost bare. Under the skin just above the shoulder blades are two outgrowths. So-called air bags are hidden under them. Walruses fill them with air, which allows them to sleep on the surface of the water.
The body length of adult males can exceed 4 meters, and their maximum weight is 2 tons. As mentioned above, large upper canines eventually turned into well-developed tusks. Their total weight reaches 12 kilograms. In length, each tusk grows to 1 meter. The walrus (the photo is presented in the article) has a rather wide muzzle, seated with a large number of thick and hard bristles resembling a mustache (vibrissa). These animals do not have external hearing organs, and the eyes are small and blind.
Species distribution
Walruses are typically arctic inhabitants. For example, the Pacific subspecies is found in shallow water in the Chukchi and East Siberian seas. Scientists estimate that the current population of Pacific walruses is no more than 200,000 individuals. Their lion's share is found not only in the Chukchi and East Siberian seas, but also near the Wrangel island, in the Beaufort Sea. In the summer, walruses can be observed in the Anadyr and Bristol bays.
Unfortunately, the Atlantic subspecies of walruses was almost exterminated as a result of commercial fishing, which at one time was not controlled by the relevant authorities. The population of this subspecies pinnipeds currently does not exceed 20,000 individuals. Atlantic walrus is widespread from Arctic Canada, Svalbard and Greenland to the western region of the Russian Arctic.
Walrus tusks
Tusks are the most characteristic feature of all adult walruses. As mentioned above, once these were fangs, which eventually lengthened and transformed into tusks. Both males and females have them. These fangs grow throughout the life of the animal, constantly updating. What are walrus tusks for? Of course, for fights, for social domination, for food search ... And not only! Let's consider this question in more detail.
Why walrus tusks?
Tusks are a universal tool for all walruses. They are used both as an ice ax, without which it is simply impossible to climb over slippery ice, and as a kind of shovel with which walruses extract shells from the seabed, and as a support for a heavy head, and even as a deadly weapon necessary for battle with rivals and enemies (polar bears). In addition, with tusks, these pinniped heavyweights slaughter large prey. In the end, this is a kind of distinctive sign of walruses: those who have more powerful fangs are the main one!
As you can see, there are many explanations for why walrus tusks are needed. Scientists say that, despite all the above advantages of tusks, their main role is social. The fact is that long and powerful fangs indicate the corresponding social status of a particular individual: in any walrus cluster, the leader and leader is precisely that individual whose fangs will visually look more powerful and longer than others.
If, for example, a dominant male suddenly meets his relative with exactly the same long and large fangs, fights cannot be avoided! Such battles do not always lead to the death of a weak enemy, very often one of the walruses leaves the battlefield. Scientists note that the walrus social insignia, concentrated in their fangs, is not limited to the dominance of these animals. The shape of the tusks and their size also indicate the age and field of the pinnipeds.
Why walrus tusks yet? For hunting, of course! It is impossible not to note how walruses use their long fangs to earn their livelihood. The animal dives deep into the sea, gets to the bottom and there already with the help of its tusks begins to scour in search of food: oysters, shells, mussels and other mollusks. The walrus digs up the seabed with its fangs and strung the victim on its tusk, like a piece of meat on a skewer!