Seals, whales and walruses
Watching seals, whales and walruses
During a boat trip through Svalbard, you are surrounded by the Arctic nature. Spotting seals, whales and walruses is possible and also very likely.
From the boat you get a good view of the sea. With a pair of binoculars and a camera you can observe and capture forever the spectacular life scenes.
Passengers and staff are always together on the boat. You are never alone since you are part of a huge adventure: live the life of the Arctic.
Whoever spotted an animal in the sea, such as a seal, a whale or a walrus, always told the others. The boat captain would inform everyone with a microphone so that all the people could run to windows or decks to watch the show.
Seal
We saw seals many times. They are the most common animals. I do not know exactly whether they were bearded seals (Erignathus barbatus) or ringed seals (Phoca hispida).
The first time I saw a seal was on the Magdalenes fjiorden: it was lying on a floating piece of ice.
Whale
It is quite rare to see whales. My whale watching experience is limited to the puffs of vapour I saw when the captain informed us about the presence of a whale in the nearby waters.
In Svalbard there are many kinds of whales: the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), the white whale (Delphinapterus leucas), the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) and the Greenland whale (Balaena mysticetus).
Walrus
Encountering a walrus is quite rare. The kind of walrus you can see in Svalbard is called the Atlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus).
I saw one walrus from the boat: it was lying on a piece of floating ice, showing its tusks.
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