Hunters’ Access to Walrus in the Changing Arctic

For Indigenous communities in the Western Arctic’s Bering and Chukchi seas, Pacific walrus stand as integral components to cultural and nutritional well being. As sea ice conditions continue to change, however, these communities’ access to walrus is challenged. A new Arctic Answers policy brief written by a diverse group of SEARCH researchers was published this month in Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research and details these realities. A synthesis  of hunters’ observations, reconstructions of past ice conditions, as well as model projections, the brief coalesces sea ice knowledge of Indigenous hunters from Gambell and Savoonga, historians, climate modelers, and marine ecologists. The team concluded that more accurate estimates of walrus populations, a marine mammal emergency harvest declaration mechanism, better anticipation of ice loss events through improved prediction, and closer collaborations between hunters and sea-ice scientists are needed to ensure community access to walrus can continue for generations. Read the brief here.