The well-known walrus known as Thor has washed up in Breiðdalsvík, Iceland, nearly two months after it was last seen in the UK on its way to its Arctic home.
Thor was found resting on a floating dock by Ellis Elisson, 41, who was supervising one of his fishing boats in a harbor in the small Icelandic fishing town on Friday morning.
At first, Ellis and his colleagues were wary of the walrus and admired it from afar.
However, after realizing that all the marine mammal wanted to do was rest, they decided to get closer, keeping a safe distance.
Ellis, an East Coast fisherman said: ‘We looked up and he was just relaxing there.
The famous walrus known as Thor has washed up in Breiðdalsvík, Iceland, almost two months after it was last seen in the UK.
The marine mammal was found resting on a floating dock by Ellis Elisson, 41, who was supervising one of his fishing boats in the harbor.
Thor left Yorkshire in early January, and many believed he would return to his Arctic home, but he reappeared in Blyth, Northumberland on January 2.
He was there all day resting, and we’ve gone a couple of times and he hasn’t moved at all.
He added: “The weather has been really good so we figured she had traveled a long way and is now soaking up the sun.”
“I took some photos from a few feet away, but if someone tried to get closer, they wouldn’t like it.”
News of the celebrity’s revival reached the UK, where British Divers Marine Life Rescue confirmed it was definitely Thor after matching the pale spot markings on the walrus’s front flippers.
On Facebook, he said: “After Thor’s visit to the UK, we wondered if we would see him again.”
“We are delighted to have been informed that he is in Iceland.”
Thor was last seen in Blyth, Northumberland on January 2, weeks after he was seen lounging on a beach for several hours in Southampton.
The marine mammal has made its way to Scarborough and has drawn huge crowds to the port.
Local wildlife experts asked people not to disturb the creature when it appeared in Scarborough on New Year’s Eve, saying it appeared to be “taking a break”.
The walrus, believed to be between three and five years old, will have traveled some 850 miles since its last visit to Blyth.
Large crowds rallied with excitement when the walrus was seen resting on a wooden pontoon at a yacht club.
It is believed to have left its home in the Arctic Circle earlier this winter and may have traveled from Canada before being seen off the coast of Zealand in the far southeast of the Netherlands on November 6.
More than a month later, the marine mammal was seen resting on Calshot Beach in Hampshire.
Fisherman Darren McKell was outside with his wife Caroline and son Luke in the early hours when they found the ‘big lump’ on December 11.
Although his sighting was claimed to be “extremely rare” and believed to be returning to the Arctic Circle, Thor reappeared in the Yorkshire seaside town of Scarborough on New Year’s Eve, where he wreaked havoc on the town’s celebrations.
Scarborough’s New Year’s fireworks display has been canceled to avoid disturbing or inconveniencing the walrus.
Members of the public form a cordon to protect the marine mammal at Calshot, which is protected under UK law.
It was believed to be the first time a walrus had been seen in Yorkshire, and a cordon was placed around it to prevent excited crowds from getting too close.
Council officials canceled the city’s New Year’s fireworks to avoid disturbing the mammal, which is protected under the 1981 Wild Life and Country Act.
Thor finally returned to the water on New Year’s Day and set off to the cheers of the locals.
Hundreds of people from around the world have gathered in coastal cities to watch the famous walrus making its way north after its 3,000-mile journey from the Arctic.
Ellis added: “I had no idea this was the walrus that has been famous all over the world.”
“After the site published the article, people started speculating, and now I know for a fact that it was him.
“He was alive and well, and I’ll be interested to see where he shows up next.”
Ellis said, “I had no idea this was the walrus that’s been all over the world.”
