All About Narwhals By: Dirk Rothe

What is a Narwhal?

You may ask yourself "what is a Narwhal?" Well a Narwhal is a medium-sized whale that has a large spiral tusk that can grow up to 8.8 ft. It lives in the Arctic Ocean around Greenland, Canada, and Russia. A Narwhal along with the Beluga Whale are the only two living species of whale in the Monodontidae family. Narwhals are mammales. They can weigh up to 1.5 tons and the can grow from 13-20 ft long. Narwhals can live to about 30-50 years. There are about 45,000-50,000 narwhals left.

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What They Eat

A Narwhal is a carnivore. There diet is mainly Greenland halibut, Polar Cod, Arctic Cod, Cuttlefish, Shrimp and Armhook squid.

Group Travel

Narwhals travel in groups of about 15-20 narwhals, but sometimes can be spotted in groups of hundreds or even thousands. They feed on fish, shrimp, squid or other aquatic organisams.

Behavior

A narwhal usually swims quite slowly but when being chased by a predator can swim very swiftly.prefer to stay near the surface of the ocean, but can dive up to 5,000 feet. Narwhals migrate closer to the shore in the summer. They communicate through sounds like clicks and squeals. Narwhals mate March through May and can only have 1 calf. A calfs color tends to be brown with no spots. Females give birth every 3 years or so and can take care of their calves for over a year.

5 Fun Facts

Its tusk is actually a tooth, Its tusk can bend about a foot before breaking, Not all narwhals have tusks, (Only males and 15% of the females have tusks.) Narwhals are endangered, and Narwhals are close relatives of bottlenose dolphins, orcas, belugas and harbour porpoise.