 |
| courtesy: NOAA |
Thirty-five thousand walruses hauled onto land, something they ordinarily do not do for safety reasons, but sea ice is becoming so scarce they have no choice but to return to the beach. They have been landing on the US side of the Chukchi Sea since 2007. WWF says large haul-outs have also occurred on the Russian shore. Such huge conglomerations pose a danger to young walruses since stampedes occur, sometimes triggered by hunting polar bears, sometimes by low-flying aircraft. Fifty carcasses in this gathering have been spotted by observers. Arctic sea ice reached is lowest point in mid-September and marked the sixth lowest extent since 1978 when satelite imagery became available. Only a bribed politician could look at this weird natural phenomenon and deny global warming exists. Not just walruses are noticing the change in climate but also polar bears and indeginous peoples of the high Arctic. [more in Guardian photo gallery]