Tribal Alaskans light on walrus meat getting tons of halibut

By Steve Quinn JUNEAU, Alaska (Reuters) - About 10,000 pounds (4.5 tonnes) of frozen halibut is being sent as food aid to four rural tribal Alaskan communities beset by a lean walrus hunting season caused by climate shifts, a representative for a group coordinating the distribution said. The fish will be distributed to four communities on islands in the Bering Sea, according to population, Donna James, a senior planner for Kawerak Inc, a non-profit tribal consortium headquartered in Nome, said on Thursday. "These communities rely on walrus to fill their freezers throughout the year," James said. "They were not able to hunt the way they normally do because of changing sea ice and winds." Two hundred boxes with 50 pounds (22.7 kg) of fish each will be distributed over the next week to the communities of Diomede, Savoonga, Wales and Gambell, James said. Located on St. Lawrence Island, Gambell and Savoonga will get about 80 boxes each, to be delivered by rural air carriers experienced in landing on short runways, often made of gravel, James said. Diomede, an island close to the U.S.-Russia border will get 10 to 20 boxes, as will Wales, about 110 miles (177 km) northwest of Nome at the tip of the Seward Peninsula. James says the fish was donated by the Washington state non-profit SeaShare, which supplies seafood to hunger-relief efforts. (Reporting by Steve Quinn; Editing by Eric M. Johnson and Sandra Maler)