The walrus is the only seal with extended tusks. Both genders have tusks but the males are longer and straighter. Walruses have a relatively small head in relation to their bodies. The face is flattened and the upper lip is covered with short stiff body hair. They are generally brown in color but it varies with age and sex. The young are dark brown and can appear black. The oldest males have the palest color, with a whitish appearance. Walruses live in the Arctic waters. Two subspecies are recognized, the Atlantic walrus, and the Pacific walrus (Fay 1985). The subspecies occupy geographically distinct areas and differ in size. The Pacific walrus inhabit the Bering

According to the U.S. Marine Mammal Act of 1972, only Alaskan Natives are allowed to hunt walruses and then only for survival purposes for making Native handcraft. There is no fixed limit to the numbers that can be harvested. The numbers of animals killed is only restricted by what can reasonably be used. The walrus has been protected since 1952 in Norway and only residents with a license are allowed to hunt walruses in Greenland.

Walruses are hunted all over their range except in Svalbard and Franz Joseph Land. All hunting today is of subsistence nature, but as seen previously, the numbers caught can be large. Accurate harvest data are important to the management of walrus populations. For management of walrus populations to be effective and to prevent population declines it is important to retrieve accurate harvest data from every country sharing a walrus population.

The annual catch varied over the years from 7,500 – 9,500 animals in the 1930’s when the population declined. The harvest went down to 2,000 – 4,000 in the 1960 – 70’s, which allowed the population to recover. The harvest increased to 6,000 – 9,000 in the 1980s, which decreased the population once again (Fay et al 1989).

There are a number of pollution related threats to walruses. One of these include oil spills. Oil spills can affect the walrus in many ways. For example, direct poisoning by ingesting the oil itself, but mostly through ingestion of oil with their food. The food of walruses consists of mainly benthic invertebrates, which are known to accumulate petroleum hydrocarbons (Born et al 1995). This can either accumulate in the body of the walrus or cause the benthic fauna to die and leave the walrus with no food.

The walruses are mainly benthic feeders and their diet is mostly made up of bivalve mollusks. Most feeding takes place at a depth between 10 – 50 meters. They can dive much deeper but

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