The Spectator

How often do you see a walrus in Britain?

[Getty Images] 
issue 07 January 2023

Tusk force

A new year firework display in Scarborough was cancelled for fear of disturbing a walrus which was resting on the seafront. How unusual is it to see a walrus in Britain?

– There have been 27 recorded sightings in UK waters in the past 130 years, the most recent in Seahouses Harbour, Northumberland, in November 2021.

– In the same year a walrus continued even further south, visiting northern Spain before returning to the Arctic.

– There have been 11 sightings in Irish waters over the past century. A 125-stone walrus was responsible for sinking several anchored boats in Irish harbours in 2021.

Top of the crops

A Radio 4 programme, Rethink, repeated claims that crop yields could fall by 30 per cent by 2050 as a result of climate change.   What is happening to crop yields in the real world? Change in yields 2011-20:

Maize 11.9%

Potatoes 10.3%

Soy beans 10.

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