284., 



jrUE FIN-FOQTED ANIMALS 



with iheir suckling cubs. Arctic explorers say that 

 a single ice floe often carries twenty or more Wal- 

 ruses. Their dai'k bodies are -closely huddled to- 

 gether, the head being inclined to the side on 

 account of the long tusks, or resting on the body of 

 a neighbor; "in this way, bored by the sight of the 

 sun shining for months or by the monotonous noise 

 of the surf, they sleep through the greater part of 

 their existence." At least one Walrus mounts guard 

 as a sentinel among the sleeping ones, and at the 

 sight of danger it wakes the rest with its loud voice, 

 or, if necessary, with a slight push of its tusks, and 

 the whole herd then prepares either for flight or for 

 defense. Where the Morse has not yet made the 

 acquaintance of Man, a strange ship scarcely rouses 

 the attention of the sentinel or the herd in general, 

 and not even the report of a cannon disturbs them, 

 as everybody in the Arctic Ocean is used to such 

 detonations, the ice sometimes bursting on large 

 tracts with a noise as of thunder. 



Movements of In regard to the character of their 

 Walruses on Land movements they seem' to approach 



and in Water, nearest to the Eared Seals. On land 

 the gait of the Walrus is heavy and unwieldy ; still 

 it does not creep, but Walks, moving the feet simul- 

 taneously crosswisCj and differing from, other ani^ 

 mals of similar gait only in putting the toes pf the 

 fore-feet and the heels of the hind-feet to the froM. 

 In climbing steep blocks of ice the Walrus is said to 

 have recourse to both of its Ipug tusks, hooking 

 them into clefts and crevices and pulling the heavy 

 body up by them ; then it again stretiphes its.neCk 

 and repeats the performance until it has reached the 

 desired halting place. Still these tusks "can hardly 

 be consid.ered to be a necessary implement to aid 

 the Walrus in walking,-as the Eared Seals, which are 

 not less heavy, ;make progress in similar localities 

 without them. I believe it to, be more probable 

 that the Walrus makes for itself a way thrOugh drift- 

 ice with the help of the tusks. It is, not unlikely 

 that by similar -efforts it, forms the openings in the 

 ice for breathing,- v^hich" it uses and keeps open as 

 well as do the other Seals. It also, surely employs its 

 tusks in rooting dp the ground, sfearching for food, 

 and also uses them as a means of defense, sometimes 

 even breaking the planks of a boat with them. ".The 

 Morse enters the water either by gliding over' steep 

 places or by throwing itsfelf into the waves with one 

 leap, like other Seals. After the manner of': its ,kin. 

 it is as swift and easy in swimming as it., is slew pn 

 the ground or on the ice; it dives to a considerable 

 depth, and is certainly able to stay under water for 

 several minutes. In swimming, the creature's speed 

 is superior to that of any boat propelled by oars, and 

 it gives evidence of a nearly untiring endurance. 

 The voice of the Walrus resembles the lowing of a 

 Cow, or the deep, hoarse bark of a Dog, changing to 

 a positive bellowing when in anger. During the 

 breeding season the voice is heard so far, that Cap- 

 tain Cook and his sailors always knew, from the noise 

 they made, the distance from a coast in fog or at 

 night, and were thus enabled to avoid a collision of 

 the ship with the ice. 



Mode of Life It is a very difficult matter to pass 



oftlie Wal- judgment on the mental qualities of 

 '■"*■ this animal from the observations 



that have so far been made, though we may suppose 

 that the Walruses are not less sagacious than the- 

 other Seals. In regard to the acuteness of their 

 senses, Pechuel-Loesche says : " Their sight is poor ; , 

 their hearing is far better, and their sense of smell is 



extremely keen, as, under favorable conditions, they- 

 scent Man at least at a ^distance of severat hun(freiS 

 paces, and one who wishes to approach them must ' 

 therefore pay careful attention to the \yind." la 

 spite of the extreme indifference it assumes towardS: 

 M^n at its first encounter, the Walrus alters its de- 

 meanor as it- gathers experience, and opposes the" 

 Lord of Creation with enei-gy and intelligence. 

 Among its noteworthy qualities we must notice not 

 only the curiosity peculiar to all Seals but also an 

 amount of courage unusual in a Pinniped. Walruses 

 enter into violent combats with each other, as well 

 as with their enemies, but only duririg the breeding ! 

 season, which usually occurs during the latter part ' 

 of spring. At this time the males not only roar and ' 

 bellow at all hours of the day, but also attack each 

 other, and tear such deep wounds in the hides of 

 their antagonists that they at times afford a scarcely 

 less horrid spectacle than do other Seals, which may 

 be said to have been torn in shreds during their duels. . 

 Tiie Female Wal- The female gives birth to a single 

 rus and Her cub in a season^ and she devotes ' 

 Cub. herself to it with most faithful ma-- 



ternal affection ; she looks to its sustenance and . 

 education in a self-sacrificing way, and defends it in 

 peril with all the courage, and fury of her race. The 

 cub returns her affection tenderly and does not dcr 

 sert its mother even in death. If one kills the cub, 

 he may count on the most obdurate resistance and 

 unquenchable revengefulness of the mother. 

 food of the Wal- The researches of Malmgren, and.; 

 rus— How Pro- Brown point to the' fact' that the 

 cured. Walrus feeds exclusively on animal*' 



matter. Both found a shell {Myia truncata), which' 

 in the northern parts of the.Atctic Ocean covers all 

 banks and cii^s, artd another one \Saxicava rugosa) 

 to be the principal ■contents- in -the stomachs of the 

 individuals which they examined, and chey con- ' 

 eluded that the Walrus employs its- powerful tusks 

 principally-to loosen the shells from the Tocks and 

 dig thtem out of, the riiud. In doing'fhis it swallowsj.i 

 riot only other low' marine animals, bul also the algs^ 

 which are fastened to the shells , and other sea-plants, 

 and' als.Or as dp SQ-many other Seals, swallows sand 

 and pebbles. "Besides the Ib-vVer- m&rine animals the ■ 

 .creature also eats fish and- occasionally even the 

 m'eat of the larger marine mammals. , 



Walruses are Walruses lying oh' the beach or on 

 Fprmidablejn the an ice field are little to be dreaded. 



Water.' as their uriwieldift"ess hinders" them,, 

 from successful attacks, but in the water they comf 

 mand, all their agility and strengths ' Occasionally 

 these courageous and intrepid representatives of ihs-^'i 

 Seal family attack even without provocation, . an^ j 

 force sailors into unintended combats. Thg Arctic | 

 explorers. Payer and Copeland, givenis an animated ' 

 ahd graphic description of su.ch an enGOuhfe'r: "If J 

 such a monster catches sight of a boat, itlifts itself -i 

 above the surface of the water in sh^eramazement^.j 

 ,: utters its cry of alarm,' which Consists -Of oft-repeated '-" 

 .'short barks, and swims towards the "boat with alt-j 

 possible speed. Its cries attract ^'others, wake th^; 

 .sleeping animals which thej,bQat JiaS'. carefulljc-a 

 a^^oided touching, and in a short t.inie thetefollowf^l 

 in the -wake of the frail litj;le vessel a numbejc dfe 

 these monsters, raging in simulated or real i\Jii;p{^j&'^ 

 may be that the animals are inspired by curiosity 

 only; but the way in which this curiosity finds ex- 

 pression is by no means happily selected, and tlie , 

 , Siuspigionthat they wish to turn the boat over, in 

 order to examine it more fully, lies very near the 



