1. Emperor Tamarin Monkey: It is rumored that the emperor tamarin was named for how it resembled the German emperor Wilhelm II, due to the characteristics of its mustache.

2. Mountain Lion Cubs: Besides being a fierce predator, mountain lions are fantastic for sporting fur mustaches.

3.  Northern Flicker: This male yellow-shafted flicker is distinguishable from his western relative because he has a black malar instead of a red one.

4. Mustached Bats: Bats from the family Mormoopidae are nicknamed mustached bats, but as you can see, they aren’t kidding. This Antillean Ghost-faced Bat’s face depicts quite the ‘stache! The other bats sporting mustaches aren’t quite as lucky. Unfortunately a sign of a bat that suffered from white nose syndrome is a white fungus around the nose. Learn how you can help bats with bad mustaches here. 

5.  Moustached Treeswift: While much is unknown about the size of this bird’s population, we can definitely say they show off one awesome mustache.

6. Catfish: This diverse group of fish are named for their barbels that resemble cat whiskers. But they aren’t the only fish to sport mustache look-a-likes: the male molly fish in Mexico actually attracts females with his mustache.

7.  Inca Tern: This bird eats anchovies and breeds on the coast of Peru and Chile—clearly an example of elegance and class!

8. Robber Fly: While we don’t take the time to look this closely at many of the insects near us, we wanted to show that up close, insects like this robber fly, dragon flies and even butterflies will demonstrate mustaches.

9. Walrus: The grizzly whiskers on this walrus impressed us. These animals are only aggressive during mating season– but still it may be best to not look this animal in the eye…

10. Tentacled Snake: These snakes are new to the Smithsonian National Zoo and have a fascinating “mustache”. Their facial feature serves as sensory mechanisms that allow them to pick up vibrations from prey.

This Photo courtesy of Brittany Steff, Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

Will you never tire of animals with mustaches? Visit this hilarious Tumblr for some fun (and less realistic) animal mustaches.

Happy mustaches everyone!

Photo credit: Peter Hemming

The 2011 update to the Arctic Report Card makes the bold statement that the Arctic Ocean climate may have already achieved a “new state.” The dramatic decline of Arctic sea ice thickness and summer extent has resulted in an upper ocean that is warmer and less saline. At the same time, the Arctic Ocean appears to have settled into a new circulation regime over the past 14 years.

And, if all these impacts of warming weren’t enough, ocean acidification (caused by the uptake of excess atmospheric CO₂ by the oceans) is starting to take its toll in the Arctic Ocean. Changes in pH are especially acute in the Bering Sea, which just happens to provide 47% of the catch caught in US commercial fisheries.

The impacts of this new climate state: “profound, continuing changes in the Arctic marine ecosystem.” When a scientific assessment uses words like “profound,” it is definitely worth paying attention. Such assessments tend to be scientifically cautious, wary about overstating the science or causing unjustified alarm.

The trends in the Arctic marine ecosystem are indeed astounding:

• Seven of the world’s 19 polar bear populations are declining. At least 2 of these declining trends have been tied directly to sea ice loss.
• Walruses are “hauling out” by the thousand along the north coast of Alaska in July and August. This unprecedented behavior has happened 4 of the last 5 summers, and is thought to be related to sea-ice losses in the Chukchi Sea.
• Baleen and bowhead whales are finding increased access to now open Arctic waters.
• Phytoplankton (microscopic plant-like organisms) productivity has increased by about 20% over just a 12-year span, mainly because there is so much more open water.
• Phytoplankton blooms in the spring are happening up to 50 days earlier than they did in the late 1990s.
• Phytoplankton communities are shifting to smaller species.
• Species that live on or near the floor of the Arctic Sea are being replaced by species typically found in more temperate oceans.

As we close out another record-setting year for the Arctic, this report provides even more evidence that polar bears and other Arctic wildlife truly are contending with climate change right now. The question is whether we can take the steps necessary to curb carbon pollution and reduce the severity of impacts to come.

Help Give Arctic Wildlife a Fighting Chance

Donate today to help National Wildlife Federation protect polar bears and other treasured wildlife threatened by climate change.

Walruses deserve protection (Photo Credit: NWF)

Extinction doesn’t wait, but the Pacific walrus will have to wait to receive federal protection.

In a disappointing turn of events, this animal will not be joining its Arctic neighbor, the polar bear, on the endangered species list. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledges the walrus deserves protection under the Endangered Species Act, but does not consider the animal a high priority compared to other threatened plants and animals.  Unfortunately, the Pacific walrus waits in a long line of over 250 species that are also candidates for federal protection – essentially, stuck in endangered species limbo.

Warmer temperatures are melting the sea ice Pacific walruses rely on for breeding, foraging, and protection from predators.  As a result, these animals are forced to go on land more often, increasing competition for food, overcrowding, and the likelihood of young walruses being crushed in stampedes.

Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski balked at the idea of the Pacific walrus receiving protection as an endangered species. The lawmaker is siding with oil companies and other commercial interests in criticizing any federal protections for the animal.  Similar complaints were also made when the polar bear was listed as an endangered species in 2008. The debate about federal protections pits oil companies and their supporters against people and wildlife: declining walrus populations could also hurt local economies where communities depend on them for food and other subsistence needs.  Tourism dollars associated with wildlife viewing are also in jeopardy.

Even though the Pacific walrus has been waitlisted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, it can’t wait out the devastating effects of climate change in the Arctic.

Find out more about the impact of global climate change and what you can do to fight for wildlife >>

1. The Great Gulf Turtle Rescue

In April we saw the beginning of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf.  By the time it was contained, more than 200 million gallons of oil had poured out and coated hundreds of square miles.  The toll on wildlife of all species and sizes was profound as evidenced from these National Wildlife Federation maps. Certainly one of the most inspiring events around the Gulf disaster was the relocation of thousands of sea turtle hatchlings from the sands of Gulf beaches to the sands of the Atlantic with the help of effective organizations such as  the Sea Turtle Conservancy.

2. The Amazing New Census of Marine Life

The Census was released in 2010.  It is a collaboration among 80 nations over 10 years.  Thousands of new species were discovered and cataloged.  Take a look at the  gallery of unbelievable and brilliant deep sea life: http://bit.ly/hkyJpj

3. The Sad Tale of Little Brown Bats

A devastating bat plague called white nose syndrome still stymies animal researchers as millions of bats have succumbed to a fungal attack that restricts their ability breathe.  Bat caves in the East have been closed to visitors and there are signs the plague is moving to the West:  http://bit.ly/a5i1T9

4. Moving Tigers From the Brink of Extinction

In the past few decades the number of wild tigers shrunk from 100,000 animals to some 3,000.  A recent international conference hosted in Russia came out with a plan to double their numbers.  http://bit.ly/gXOIZ5 Actor Leonardo DiCaprio personally made a $1 million gift to help jump-start the plan’s implementation.

5. The Loss of a U.S. wildlife hero

In 2010 we saw the untimely death of Sam Hamilton (54) the director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Sam was a respected 30-year professional dedicated to species protection. http://wapo.st/dEpzZ0

6. Discovery of 1,200 New Amazon Species

Our colleagues at the World Wildlife Fund demonstrated to people everywhere how much there is to learn about our natural world when they released their report on the discovery of over one thousands new species in the Amazon via a decade of study: http://bit.ly/cWnBFH

7. Wolf Protection Debate in the Northern Rockies

The Department of the Interior and the States of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have been in extensive discussions in a quite heated political setting over whether wolves reintroduced to the Northern Rockies in the mid 1990s still merit endangered species protection:  http://bit.ly/iangkb

8. The Continuing Struggle Against Illegal Wildlife Trade

The battle continued in 2010 to cut down on wildlife poaching and trade in endangered animals.  There were increases in the number of apprehensions and arrests but, as the smugglers become more devious and the poachers become more aggressive, the overall signs are not good.  Wildlife smuggling seems to be on the rise and is an international black market rivaling illegal drug imports.   http://bit.ly/hauD9j

9. Polar Bears Stuck on Shore

This year polar bears in the Arctic region were delayed several weeks from making their winter trip out onto the Arctic Sea ice for their annual seal hunting.  Warm weather caused to ice to be late in forming and the bears were stuck on land, some in emaciated condition.

10. Walrus Exodus Onto Land

A mass Alaskan exodus of 10,000 to 20,000 walruses to land was an highly unusual event this Fall that also reflects the loss of sea ice in the arctic.   This mass exodus was a new one on the Chukchi sea coast and wildlife experts see it as a sign of global climate change:  http://bit.ly/aTmljY

11. Japanese Whale Hunt in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary

As summer begins in the southern hemisphere, Japanese whalers and environmentalists are converging again in Antarctic waters for another stand-off and possible battle over their intense differences concerning the legality of whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.  Both whale and human lives will be on the line: http://bit.ly/et6pzK

12. Mountain Gorillas Making a Comeback

Ending on a more promising note, 30 years ago the mountain gorilla population was down to 250.  This year 782 were counted between two locations. http://aol.it/h7A1Ix

Bottom line: Wildlife conservation has unbelievable and daunting challenges ahead but, despite the overwhelming odds there are may glimmers of hope that remind us that staying with the fight to protect species, habitats and stop global warming are more important than ever.

A walrus in the Canadian Arctic's Foxe Basin is at home on the ice.

I am talking, of course, about global warming, a term that was not part of the common parlance when I was a child, though the phenomenon was already a concern for many scientists.  As the Earth has warmed in the wake of increasing greenhouse-gas pollution of the atmosphere, Arctic ice—critical to walrus survival—has been melting.  Any young child today who became inspired by a book about walruses might just live to see the last walrus sink, literally, into extinction.

What’s So Great About the Pacific Walrus?

Well, its size for one thing.  Pacific walrus males, or bulls, average about 2,700 pounds and measure 10.5 feet long, making them one of the largest pinnipeds—a term meaning “fin foot” that refers to seals and sea lions as well as to walruses, dugongs, manatees and their relatives.

A walrus at Foxe Basin in the Arctic Ocean clings to an ice floe too small to support its weight.

The Pacific walrus is the largest of three surviving walrus subspecies. The Atlantic  walrus, found more in the eastern end of the Arctic Ocean, is the smallest, and the Laptev walrus, of Russia’s Laptev Sea, is middle sized.   The walrus is the only pinniped armed with long, curved, ivory tusks, which can weigh up to 3 pounds each.  Here are some Pacific walrus facts that should impress an adult and wow a child:

• When born, walruses weigh 100 to 150 pounds and are more than 4 feet long.
• Bulls aren’t fully grown until about 15 years old; females mature at 10, topping out at about 1,900 pounds and 9 feet long.
• Walrus blubber can grow up to 5 inches thick, insulating the animals from sub-freezing Arctic sea water.
• Migrating Pacific walruses travel up to 1,800 miles.
• Walruses eat sea cucumbers, sea worms and other marine animals, but their main food is clams, which they eat on the ocean floor.
• Walrus numbers were much reduced by years of uncontrolled hunting in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but thanks to protection by laws such as the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Pacific walrus seems to be recovering—it numbers about 200,000 animals (the Atlantic, much harder hit by hunting, languishes at only about 20,000, and the Laptev Sea walrus numbers about 10,000).

The Global Warming and the Pacific Walrus

Unlike the Atlantic walrus, which tends to stay close to shore, the Pacific walrus typically summers on ice in the Chukchi Sea, floating over the continental shelf.  Shelf waters are shallow enough—less than 630 feet—to allow the animals to dive for food.  But in recent years the ice has been retreating toward the pole, thanks to global warming.  According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Arctic temperatures have risen during the past century by 1.1 to 1.6 degrees °F.  The panel predicts that the Arctic could warm by 5 to 14 degrees F by the end of the century, and that sea ice could disappear in summer within the next 40 years.

Walruses group up in tight quarters at the Arctic's Round Island.

As the sea ice retreats in summer, it takes walruses far from shore and away from the shallow waters they need for feeding.  To stay near the continental shelf, the animals have been seeking resting places on land rather than on ice.  Unfortunately, whereas the sea ice was widely scattered and allowed walruses to disperse throughout feeding areas, the beaches, limited in number and often in size, tend to concentrate the animals within restricted feeding areas, increasing competition for food.

In some areas thousands of walruses are cramming on to beaches that can hold only a fraction of their numbers, with these terrible results:

• Young and small walruses are being crushed.  On Alaska’s Icy Cape scientists in 2009 found 131 dead calves that apparently had been crushed.  Biologists also found thousands of crushed walruses near Russia’s Cape Schmidt in 2007, where tens of thousands had packed ashore.
• Thousands of young walruses also probably drown in open waters when they cannot find ice for resting, but accounting for such animals is difficult if not impossible.
• Stress on walruses increases as more of the animals crowd into feeding areas near shore, jeopardizing their nutritional health and reducing the number of young that are born or survive.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is studying whether the walrus should go on the endangered species list, has warned that as ice in the Chukchi disappears, there is a 40 percent chance that the walrus will be extinct or in danger of extinction by the end of this century.  Ominously, the state of Alaska is working to open the Chukchi Sea to oil drilling and opposing the listing of Arctic pinnipeds dependent on ice (the state is trying to have the polar bear, also jeopardized by loss of sea ice, taken off the endangered list, too).

What’s the Future for the Walrus?

One hope for the walrus is that it will be listed as an endangered species, which will give it protections designed specifically to spur its recovery.  However, recovery plans for marine species are difficult to initiate.  The problem is compounded because the greatest threat to walrus survival, as well as to the survival of many other Arctic species, is global warming.  If climate change is not abated, then measures taken to protect the walrus will likely fail, leaving the animal to survive only in books.  Global warming is so dangerous on so large a scale that its threat extends well beyond the Arctic.  “The science is clear, that unless we act now we will likely see 20 to 30 percent of all plant and animals species extinct or on the road to extinction by 2050,” says Larry Schweiger, NWF president.

NWF and Global Warming

Combating a warming climate is an NWF priority.  Aside from working to pass federal laws designed to reduce greenhouse gases, NWF offers you many ways to help fight global warming and ensure a future for wildlife and habitat.

Watch this week’s NWF Climate Capsule:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s a quick flashback at what Jim Everett would do to Dirty’s bucket if he ever called him Chris.

Want the NWF Climate Capsule video delivered to you every week? Subscribe:

• Go to the NWF Climate Capsule archive on YouTube & click the yellow “subscribe” button in the upper right corner
• Subscribe to the Capsule as a podcast via iTunes

Got climate questions? Any global warming denier arguments you’d like to hear Dirty sock puppet? Email us!

Thousands of walruses, many of them mothers and calves, have left the shrinking and thinning Chukchi Sea ice for the Alaska shoreline. The packed beaches can lead to tramplings and deaths for the walruses.

Today’s proof of global warming’s continuing impact on people & wildlife:

Tens of thousands of walruses have come ashore in northwest Alaska because the sea ice they normally rest on has melted.

U.S. government scientists say this massive move to shore by walruses is unusual in the United States. But it has happened at least twice before, in 2007 and 2009. In those years Arctic sea ice also was at or near record low levels.

The walruses “stretch out for one mile or more. This is just packed shoulder-to-shoulder,” U.S. Geological Survey biologist Anthony Fischbach said in a telephone interview from Alaska. He estimated their number at tens of thousands.

Dr. Doug Inkley, the National Wildlife Federations senior scientist, told me the walrus migration is “a direct result of climate change.” Doug says forcing the marine mammals to huddle on land increases the danger factor. “These walruses now have to forage further for food, and are at risk of being trampled should the herd be spooked & stampede.”

“These animals are symbols of what is happening to wildlife all around the world,” says NWF’s John Kostyack. “Although most movements in response to climate change are more subtle, wildlife are on the move virtually everywhere across the globe, and there are significant survival risks associated with many of these climate-related disruptions.”

What kind of habitat do walruses need? What do they eat? Learn more over at NWF’s Ranger Rick.

Photo via Flickr’s marthaenpiet