Long and powerful canines growing from the upper jaw are the hallmark of the walrus. In males, they can reach up to 1 meter in length, in females, they are much smaller and thinner. There are many versions explaining why walrus need fangs, but not all of them are reliable.
The North American Indians living in the neighborhood of the walrus colonies called these animals "walking with their teeth." The Indians believed that walruses, clumsy on land, cling to the ground with long fangs, moving along the surface. It was believed that fangs are also needed by walruses in order to climb on ice floes, resting their tips against the ice edge. But, if you follow this logic, it turns out that walruses and females, whose fangs are very small, have to constantly sit in the water - after all, they have nothing to catch and hold on to.
However, this is not at all the case - both females and walruses move beautifully on the ground, helping themselves with front and rear fins. For the same reason, another version that walruses dig the earth and the seabed with tusks in search of food does not stand up to criticism, because both females and walruses do not starve without tusks.
Modern researchers, who closely observe the life of walruses in natural conditions, are increasingly convinced that these formidable tusks are just a frightening accessory confirming the status of a male. They can be a formidable weapon that protects against a natural enemy - a polar bear, and serve to sort things out with rivals in the struggle for the attention of females. Sometimes fangs are also used for hunting seals, but for this the walrus must try very hard to get close to the gape of prey.
The fact that canines are only a weapon that helps to conquer a larger number of females is indirectly confirmed by the fact that over several decades of observations, the average length of walrus canines in one population is constantly increasing. Following the theory of natural selection, we can conclude that it is the long and formidable canines that help the male to assert his primacy. Scientists have found a direct relationship between the length of a male's canine teeth and the number of females in his harem. Naturally, the offspring of those who can boast of long and sharp fangs are more numerous.
