Climate change is causing walruses to plunge to their deaths

Confused by a combination of shrinking ice cover and their own poor eyesight, walruses scale cliffs and often plummet to their deaths when they attempt to return to sea.

The devastating effects of climate change on the Arctic and its wildlife have been further highlighted in a shocking nature documentary that looks at the gruesome fate of walruses.

A new segment of Netflix’s Our Planet, shows how walruses are being forced increasingly onto shore as sea ice dwindles.

The David Attenborough-narrated series shows how walruses, who have become confused by a combination of shrinking ice cover and their own poor eyesight, scale cliffs and often plummet to their deaths when they attempt to return to sea.

In the disturbing clip, walruses are seen perched precariously on the edge of the rocky cliffs, totally unaware of just how high up they are.

The only thing they know, Attenborough says, is that they need to join the other walruses and find food.

‘A walrus’ eyesight out of water is poor,’ Attenborough says.

‘But they can sense the others down below. As they get hungry, they need to return to the sea.

‘In their desperation to do so, hundreds fall from heights they should never have scaled.’

Walruses are among some of the worst affected by the effects of climate change on the Arctic, as they rely heavily on sea ice to rest between hunts.

As the ice shrinks, more and more are coming onto shore, WWF explains.

In addition to the unfamiliar and dangerous terrain, ‘on land, they’re highly susceptible to disturbance from humans, aircraft or predators such as polar bears, which can spook them and cause crushing stampedes,’ the WWF says.

Sea ice also provides the walruses with crucial shelter from storms and predators, according to a report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

While the loss of sea ice itself may not drive them to extinction, scientists warn it will nonetheless have a devastating impact on their population.

‘It is certain, that land-based sites alone will not support the same number of walruses that the mixed seasonal use of sea ice and land has permitted in the past,’ scientists wrote in a 2015 NOAA study.

‘Additionally, documented declines in the northern Bering Sea among dominant clam populations that are critical prey for walruses, associated with reductions in sea ice declines, provide cause for concern; such ecosystem changes are clearly important for walruses and other animals.’