Walrus gay

Part of a series on Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity, by Bruce Bagemihl. Enormous arctic pinnipeds, a group encompassing seals, are walruses. Males can attain impressive dimensions, reaching lengths of up to twelve feet and weighing in at 3,500 pounds. The heterosexual breeding period occurs from January through March. Males engage in copulation with multiple females, yet these pairings lack enduring connections. During other periods, when both sexes are present, they predominantly maintain separate social circles. When females and their offspring embark on summer migrations northward, the males remain, indulging in their latent walrus-like gayness.

In groups numbering up to fifty, male walruses engage in surface-level homosexual displays, courting, copulating, and expressing affection. They vie for partners by positioning themselves on favorite rocks or beaches, inflating their throat sacs, and producing a series of vocalizations. Often, one or both suitors dive and resurface repeatedly until their intended partner grasps their overtures and/or intentions are understood. Occasionally, groups congregate to witness a homosexual courtship serenade; the courting walrus might have a younger male companion to support and assist his vocalizations.

Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus)

Homosexuality: Male Behaviors: Courtship, Affection, Sexual Activity, Pair-bonding Rank: Primary Observations: Wild, Captive

(See It's Gay Animal Fortnight for an explanation of this table.)

Another aspect of walrus homosexual courtship, possibly generating unsettling recollections for some, yet arousing the interest of those who relish the larger-than-life, is this excerpt from Bagemihl: 'The male rubs his erected, arm-sized penis against his front flipper.' Male walruses, predictably, have a fondness for anal sex with one another. They also engage in masturbatory acts, often accompanied by particular sounds. Roughly a quarter of male interactions are characterized by sexual, courtship, or homosocial/homoerotic activities. Even during the breeding season, younger males might engage in homosexual relations instead of heterosexual ones; they frequently participate in exclusively homosexual activity for approximately four to five years before having the opportunity for heterosexual pairings. Male walruses in captivity have engaged in sexual encounters with grey seals.

Female walruses likely benefit from the significant segregation due to males' limited interest in females beyond reproductive functions; males tend to be aggressively unyielding and violent towards females. Females often band together to care for their offspring. This protective coalition helps insulate them against injuries from male aggression. Yet, childless females also exhibit a proclivity for seizing calves from other females. Even so, males occasionally instigate stampedes and violent outbreaks, causing hundreds of females or calves to perish. A possibly unscientific, but undeniably apparent, misogyny is a notable component of walrus behaviour. They are rather like obese, amphibious Spartans, embodying a primal essence.

Next time on Gay Animal Fortnight… Bowerbirds: they may not appreciate show tunes, but they are passionate about decor.

Original Walrus image from Wikipedia Commons.