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🦁 Animal world 🐬 Sea animals

The walrus

The walrus

πŸ“– In short

The walrus is a huge sea animal that lives in the cold seas around the North Pole. It has two long ivory tusks hanging from its mouth, a thick moustache, a fat heavy body, and flippers instead of feet. It's related to the seal.

🀩 Did you know?

  • A male walrus can be 3.7 meters long and weigh 1400 kilograms.
  • A walrus can live up to 40 years.
  • A walrus's tusk can be nearly a meter long.
  • A walrus can sleep while floating in the water.

πŸ”Ž Find out more

🌟 Tusks for everything

A walrus digs its long tusks into the ice to haul its heavy body up, and also uses them to defend itself and show its strength to other males.

πŸ” Whiskers that find food

A walrus dives to the seabed and uses its many sensitive whiskers to find clams and shellfish in the mud, then sucks them out of their shells with its mouth.

πŸ’‘ Big gatherings

Walruses love lying squashed together with hundreds of friends on the ice or beach. And their skin turns pink when they warm up in the sun!

🎯 Thick blubber

Under a walrus's skin is a thick layer of fat that protects it from the bitter cold of freezing water.

πŸ“Έ More pictures

The walrus
The walrus
The walrus

🧩 Test yourself

1 How does a walrus use its tusks?

2 Where does the walrus live?

3 A walrus can live up to ?? years.

4 Which picture shows β€œThe walrus”?

🦁 Discover more

πŸ“· Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons