A partial assessment by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of Pacific walruses estimates their current minimum population to be 15,164 animals, but the agency believes that some walruses were missed in the survey.

Pacific walruses are found mainly in the two seas off the west coast of Alaska in waters shared with Russia. They sometimes move into the Beaufort Sea off of northern Alaska and the East Siberian Sea on the Russian side as well. A 1990 aerial survey estimated the walrus population at 201,039 in the region, and while the most recent estimate finding 15,164 was not comprehensive, the significant variation from the 1990 estimate has some experts alarmed.