'Thor' the Walrus makes rare appearance at Calshot beach

A VISITING walrus which hauled itself on Calshot beach over the weekend prompted a warning to give the animal "a very wide berth".

Nicknamed 'Thor', the walrus was spotted by the public resting on the shore yesterday (Sunday) morning, and before long the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) was on the scene, along with Calshot RNLI and the coastguard.

A cordon was put in place to ensure those desperate to get a glimpse of the large mammal, which has since been seen heading up the River Itchen, did not get too close.

Darren Mckell was setting off from Calshot with his wife and son to go fishing when he caught sight of Thor around 6.30am and called the BDMLR.

"Just as we were about to launch, we saw a lump on the beach," said Darren, who lives in Fawley and works at Portsmouth Naval Base. "It was quite dark so we couldn't make out what it was, but it was an unusual sighting so we went over to investigate.

"We thought at first the walrus might be injured – this was not something you see every day and I don't expect I'll ever see it again.

"I've seen lots of seals and dolphins but never a walrus; I don't think I took it in at the time and I didn't appreciate just how rare it is to see these animals, but when I was out fishing it hit me how surreal it had been.

"Of course the Solent is a busy waterway so I just hope he makes it back home."

Photos of Thor were shared on social media, which prompted a warning by the BDMLR to steer clear of the beach and "behave sensibly and responsibly".

In a statement, the charity said it was monitoring Thor, who was first sighted in the Netherlands on 6th November and had been travelling along the coast of France.

"Key advice is being issued to everyone to give the walrus a very wide berth to avoid disturbing it," it said. "They travel long distances and have rest stops to recover and regain energy before moving on again.

"Every time it is disturbed by people being too close or noisy will impact its chances of survival. Walruses are protected from disturbance under UK law."

The group explained that just last year two walruses known as Wally and Freya visited the UK.

"Wally came to south Wales and the Isles of Scilly, and Freya visited Northumberland and Shetland," said the BDMLR. "Wally required very involved management from welfare groups on the ground to keep him and people safe until he moved on successfully.

"In contrast, Freya returned to Norway where a critical lack of management of her situation led to large crowds often gathered closely around her. She was killed by Norwegian authorities in August as she was deemed to be a danger to the public.

"BDMLR and colleagues started an open letter and petition to Norway asking for explanations on why management measures were not implemented

"Of course we do not know how long Thor will be around the UK, but while he/she is here we ask everyone to behave sensibly and responsibly for their safety as well as that of the walrus to avoid a worst-case scenario occurring."

Jane Banting, lifeboat operations manager at Calshot RNLI said the crew watched for "several hours" as families arrived to admire Thor.

"He seemed totally unconcerned by our presence, enjoying a sleep before setting out on his travels west,” she said.

Waterside police, who also attended the scene, thanked "those who were respectful and kept their distance from [Thor] whilst he rested".

The Atlantic walrus lives in the seasonally ice-covered northern waters of Canada, Greenland, Norway and Russia, and feeds in shallow waters, eating clams, molluscs, worms, snails, soft shell crabs, shrimp and sea cucumbers.

Male walruses can reach up to 3.5 metres long and weigh up to 1,200kg.