How do walruses efficiently extract soft tissue from a clam shell?
Answer
Creating negative pressure via suction
The process used by walruses to consume mollusks is a specialized adaptation relying heavily on suction mechanics. After locating prey buried in the substrate using their vibrissae, the walrus employs its highly muscular cheeks and palate to generate substantial negative pressure. This action creates a powerful vacuum that effectively sucks the soft body of the mollusk right out of its protective shell. This method is favored because it is extremely fast and efficient, often leaving the shell either whole or only slightly cracked, which is vital for harvesting thousands of small organisms without the high energy cost associated with crushing hard shells.
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How Walruses Really Eat Clams - YouTube
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