A walrus has been discovered in northern France, thousands of miles away from its arctic habitat.
The sea animal, commonly found in Greenland, Russia or Alaska, was seen at the port of Dieppe in Normandy on Friday night.
It is pictured lying on the shore in a tweet posted by officials in the Normandy region and does not appear to be showing any signs of health.
Authorities have set up a safety perimeter to protect the walrus seen by the port captain, while a notice was issued warning people not to interact with or disturb the mammals. this.
It dived into the water at 10:30 a.m. local time on Saturday morning and has not been seen since.
Normandy and Seine-Maritime counties said: “A walrus was discovered on the evening of Friday 18 November at the entrance to the port of Dieppe by the captain of the port.
“A safety belt has been established… and a notice to navigation users has been put in place to prevent any interaction or disturbance with the mammal until it departs. .”
The walrus usually leaves the sea to rest before returning to the surface.
However, these animals have poor vision when out in the water and can become aggressive and dangerous when scared.
Officials from the PELAGIS observatory, a marine biodiversity research center, continued to monitor the animal this morning.
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Discovered walrus on artificial island
This is the second time this week a walrus has appeared in Europe, with one being captured on film in the Netherlands’ Zeeland region for the first time in 45 years.
It has not been confirmed whether the object seen is the same animal at Dieppe.
Again Juvenile walruses have been seen on the Pembrokeshire coast in Wales in March of last year.
It is believed to be the same animal that washed up on the island of Valentia in the west of Ireland and is believed to be searching for food.
The rare sighting is believed to be the first time the RSPCA has been summoned to inspect a walrus since the animal charity was founded more than a century ago.
Pictures of beluga whales in the Seine in August
In August of this year, the Seine became home to a beluga whale that is “dangerously thin” after refusing to eat.
Despite an unprecedented rescue operation, authorities were forced to euthanize the animal.
Three months earlier, a young minke whale slayed after becoming “very distressed” while stranded in the Thames.
