Global Warming Causing Walruses En Masse To Migrate To Alaskan Beaches

Walruses are being adversely affected by global warming which is causing sea ice that they use to melt and in the process forces them to congregate on a remote island in Alaska near Point Lay. A decade ago people who lived in Point Lay said at most only a handful of walruses used to come ashore every year, however now walruses are arriving en mass every summer.

30,000 walruses

In 2014 over 30,000 walruses landed on the shore, which was a record. It is too early to tell whether this year’s haul will be more. What can be said is that of the nine events that have taken place in previous years, this year’s haul is the third earliest according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The event started on August 20th locals said.

Ice is melting

Jim MacCracken who is a biologist that works for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says that surface and air temperatures in Arctic have risen perhaps twice as fast as they have in lower latitudes. This has meant the ice is melting at both a faster rate and earlier every year, whilst the freeze up is starting later. When the ice is completely melted the Walruses are being forced on shore and hauling out.

Obama will be visiiting

President Obama will be making the first every trip by a U.S. President to the Alaskan Arctic later this month. He will be visiting Kotzebue which lies just 200 miles south of where the walruses congregate. The White House is saying the president will be using the occasion top see first hand the effects of climate change