Narwhals: Unicorns of the Sea

• Context (DTE): For the first time, scientists have captured footage of narwhals (Monodon monoceros) using their iconic tusks for hunting, providing crucial insights into their behaviour.

About Narwhals (Monodon monoceros)

• Often referred to as the ‘unicorns of the sea’, narwhals are strange and beautiful creatures.
• Habitation: Arctic waters of Canada, Greenland, Norway and Russia.
• Physical Description: Males are distinguished by their long, spiral tusks, which are actually elongated teeth with sensory capability. Some narwhals have up to two tusks, while others have none.
  • They change their colour as they age. Newborns are blue-grey, juveniles are blue-black, and adults are mottled grey. Old narwhals are nearly all white.
• Diet: The feed on Greenland halibut, Arctic and polar cod, squid and shrimp.
• Conservation Status: IUCN: LC
• Threats: Oil and gas development (collisions and underwater noise), climate change, pollution etc.