Pacific walruses are losing sea ice habitat and being forced into crowded land haul-outs. This creates significant welfare challenges including stampede mortality.
Walrus welfare under climate change illustrates the direct translation of habitat loss into acute welfare harm. The disappearance of sea ice forces walruses into crowded land haul-outs where they cannot rest comfortably, must travel further for food, and face stampede mortality when disturbed. The deaths of calves crushed in stampedes triggered by aircraft, bears, or humans are acute welfare events that have been well-documented. Disturbance minimisation — keeping aircraft at altitude, managing bear-haul-out interactions, and maintaining buffer zones around large haul-outs — provides direct welfare protection for individual animals. Climate action that slows sea ice loss addresses the root cause. Remote wildlife cameras that allow observation without disturbance support both welfare protection and scientific monitoring.