Hundreds of people gathered at the seafront in Scarborough over the weekend to catch a rare glimpse of an Arctic walrus.
The visitor is believed to have been Thor, the same animal that was spotted on the Hampshire coast a few weeks ago.
Thor is still only an adolescent and he could grow to weigh nearly two tonnes.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever seen one. It’s huge. We see seals quite regularly round Scarborough coastline but something of that size — it’s enormous,” said Richard Coulson, 51, who lives close to the harbour in Scarborough where the walrus had settled in for a rest.
“You respect nature when you see something of that size. Its tusks are bigger than my arms.”
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The walrus, usually found in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas, appears to have made its way from the Netherlands via France to England. Some have suggested that it is looking for a mate. However, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) service has said this is unlikely and believes instead that Thor is more likely to be a climate refugee.
He was seen in Petten, the Netherlands, on November 7 and then Brittany on November 25. By December 10, he had swum to Church Norton, near Pagham in West Sussex, popping up the next day in Calshot, Hampshire, and making off just after midday.
The service has urged people to give the animal “a very wide berth”.
“Walrus travel long distances and have rest stops to recover and regain energy before moving on again,” it said. “Every time it is disturbed by people being too close or noisy, it will impact its chance of survival. Walruses are protected from disturbance under UK law.”
In Scarborough, the local council decided to cancel a New Year’s Eve fireworks display to avoid distressing Thor.
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Steve Siddons, leader of the council, said: “We are really disappointed that we’ve had to cancel the fireworks but the welfare of the walrus has to take precedence. Our decision is based on expert advice from the BDMLR charity.”
Chris Cook, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire area co-ordinator for the charity, said: “It is extremely rare that an Arctic walrus should come ashore on the Yorkshire coast. The creature needs time to rest and recuperate before it continues its journey.”
Thor is the third walrus to be seen in the UK in the past two years, after Wally last year and Freya, who visited Northumberland and Shetland.
Wally has since been spotted in France and Spain, and has now returned to Iceland. Freya met a less happy fate. The authorities in Norway shot her dead amid fears for public safety.
Stuart Ford, who runs the Sealife Safari boat tour agency in Scarborough, told the PA news agency: “I was going down to my boat and there it was on the slipway — magnificent. It’s got to be half a ton.
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“I think it’s a once-in-a-lifetime, first-time-ever thing in Scarborough to see.”
