"When he's on the pier he comes up to the pier and stays there for up to 12 hours just trying to rest," said Jóhannesdóttir. He also gained more local and international fandom. However, the mammal "appears to have had a largely peaceful time, sleeping and going out feeding" since arriving in Iceland.
Wally seems to have had fun traveling across Europe, sinking and hitting several boats in Ireland and the Isles of Scilly. Jóhannesdóttir said it is quite uncommon for walruses to show up in the area. Recently, he was spotted again twice at the pier. Wally's Trip Across EuropeĪccording to Jóhannesdóttir, Wally had been sighted in the area four times since he got there, resting by a fuel pump, and swimming in a nearby fjord, Skarðsfjörður a few days later. "Then on the following day he followed some boats into the harbour and climbed up to this small boat pier," she added.Įxperts hope he is resting and building up blubber reserves before returning to Arctic to join his fellow walruses and find a mate. "He was first seen on 18 September by some fishermen that were coming into the mouth of Hornafjörður," said Lilja Jóhannesdóttir, a biologist who lives in Höfn and works at the south-east Iceland nature research center, which monitors Wally. Wally was first spotted a few weeks ago by fishermen at the mouth of a fjord in the south-east of the country, resting on a sea wall. After about three weeks at sea, the celebrity walrus was rediscovered in Iceland on Sunday, looking skinnier but getting closer to his Arctic home.
The walrus, normally found in Arctic seas, has travelled an estimated 4,000km along the coast of western Europe over the past four months.Įxperts don’t know why he arrived off Valentia in March but say factors could include climate change.After disappearing for more than five months around the UK and Ireland, observers feared for Wally the walrus whereabouts. She also appealed to recreational and ecotour boat operators to stay between 100-500m away from the animal. Ms Croce appealed to people to report any sightings of him to SRI's 24/7 hotline at 0 and to not share the location publicly until a designated haul-out site for him is established. Wally is expected to continue cruising north, along Kerry and then up the western seaboard. “We only step in when human interactions with him threaten to disturb him. “We would like to be able to let him to continue his natural behaviours but when word gets out about his location, a situation arises where we have to intervene. “But things have gone quiet over the weekend so we think he's 'flying below the radar', which is good, for now. Our aims are to provide somewhere for the walrus to rest, to effectively monitor him, to protect him from disturbance, and to prevent damage to property. "We are getting assistance from BDMLR and we are working with Orca Ireland and the West Cork Animal Welfare Group. “We have never done this before so there are lots of learnings as we go," Ms Croce said. SRI’s response will depend on where and when Wally is next sighted, she said. Those towels have now been used to scent the pontoon in the hope of encouraging Wally to use it when or if it is deployed.Īnd while this potential response would require close liaison with the Coast Guard, local authorities, wildlife, marine or port authorities, Ms Croce said they have also secured the use of a disused rib, which is more easily transported and installed. It is ready to be deployed quickly if there are more sightings of Wally in busy harbour areas over the coming days.Ī boat owner who lost his vessel to Wally last week used towels to gather the animal’s scent before the boat sank. Ms Croce said SRI has now secured a sturdy pontoon, with three raised sides, which looks like a floating couch.
Wally the walrus install#
SRI executive director Melanie Croce said they have also been liaising with British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) in the UK, who helped install a floating pontoon for Wally during his six-week stint in the Isles of Scilly in July, on how best to respond. Picture: British Divers Marine Life Rescue A similar pontoon is ready to be deployed here following recent sightings of Wally of West Cork. Wally resting on the floating pontoon in St Mary's Harbour in the Isles of Scilly. His penchant for lounging on boats prompted an appeal from Seal Rescue Ireland (SRI) for the donation of an unused rib or a large pontoon that could be used as a designated haul-out site for him to rest. Walruses, like seals and sea lions, are pinnipeds, or semi-aquatic, which means they must come up on land or onto a floating object to rest.
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