Title: BBC - Earth - The tusks of narwhals are actually teeth that are inside-out
Headings: The tusks of narwhals are actually teeth that are inside-out
The tusks of narwhals are actually teeth that are inside-out
Content: View image of This is why narwhals don't spear their food (Credit: Nap_Interrupted, CC by 2.0)
"A lot of people think this whale has teeth in its mouth, and it has none," says Nweeia. The only tooth they have is the tusk. This tooth is almost like a piece of skin in the sense that it has all these sensory nerve endings
All sorts of suggestions have been made about the function of the narwhal tusk. Perhaps it is an acoustic probe for detecting sound, or a temperature regulator, or a breathing organ. Maybe it is an aggressive weapon for narwhal-narwhal battles, or for fending off predators. It could also be an icebreaker, a digging tool, or a way to show off to females. To solve this puzzle, Nweeia has assembled a team that includes marine and developmental biologists, comparative zoologists, dentists, and orthopedic surgeons. In a 2014 study that is perhaps the most detailed and high-tech analysis of the tusk ever attempted, they concluded that it is a highly sensitive organ. View image of Narwhals (Monodon monoceros) are the "unicorns of the sea" (Credit: