The State of Circumpolar Walrus Populations

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For these reasons, we suggest that it is premature to attempt to model future walrus habitat
conditions across the species range. It may be possible to model specific populations, but data will
still be lacking, to varying degrees (e.g., D.B. Stewart et al. 2014b).
KNOWLEDGE GAPS AND RESEARCH NEEDS
Active research is being conducted on all walrus populations, but numerous research gaps and
sources of uncertainty remain (Table 5). In some cases, gaps are population-specific, for others,
research is needed for all or most populations (e.g., recent estimates of population-specific growth
rates; struck and lost rates for hunted populations). Knowledge gaps are summarized by five main
categories (Table 5).
We have not ranked knowledge gaps with respect to research priorities, as these decisions are
better left to the specific research teams, management authorities and funding agencies. In many
cases, there will a logical sequence of gaps that need filling to address information needs - for
example, data on walrus distribution and seasonal movements will inform the design of surveys
for abundance, and all these data are needed for comprehensive assessments of potential threats
(e.g., industrial development, harvest rates, climate change).
Responsible management jurisdictions could plan research agendas based on established
research needs, with input from co-management partners and NGOs, as is currently being done
by DFO in Canada (Stewart et al. in prep). International cooperation in the establishment of
research goals and priorities is also important, and this type of cooperation is ongoing in many
cases (e.g., harvest management for stocks shared between Canada and West Greenland,
NAMMCO 2006; USA-Russia working groups, Meek et al. 2008; Schuessler 2016).
Abundance, distribution, and movements
There have been considerable recent advances in understanding of movements and seasonal
distribution patterns for some walrus populations (e.g., satellite-tagging research in the Bering
and Chukchi seas and at Svalbard (Lydersen et al. 2008; Freitas et al. 2009; Jay et al. 2010, 2012,
2014; Lydersen and Kovacs 2014)), but additional data would be beneficial in many cases.
Among Atlantic walrus populations, recent (2015) satellite tracking of animals tagged in
northwest Greenland suggests that the three stocks identified in the