Walrus spotted on beach in Scotland 2,000 miles from home
A bird-watching warden in the Orkney islands got more than he bargained for on Sunday when he stumbled across an enormous walrus resting on the beach - 2,000 miles away from its home in the Arctic.
The North Ronaldsay Bird Observatory blog said: "Well out of its range, this fantastic beast should be in the Arctic right know and from its scars and markings it appears to be the same individual photographed in the Faroes at the end of February.
"We don't know much about walruses and it could be unwell due to its approachability, but it does however appear to us to be a healthy animal and is presumably fairly tame having never encountered humans before.
"There is one previous Orkney record (in 1984) and about a dozen from Shetland and with many of North Ronaldsay's bays being sheltered, shallow water suiting its feeding habits, it may stick around a while... "
The blog will be kept updated with any further sightings of the walrus.
The long-toothed animals are known for their 'moustache' whiskers and huge bulk, with adult males weighing up to 3,700lb.
Walruses spend a large amount of time resting on the sea ice in the Arctic, where they look for tasty molluscs to eat. Their famous tusks can reach up to one metre (3ft 3in) in length, and weigh up to 12lb.
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