Title: Narwhal | Unicorn of the Sea - Whale & Dolphin Conservation USA
Headings: Narwhal
Narwhal
Narwhals inspired many a seafaring legend and their tusks were once sold as unicorn horns
What doe a narwhal look like?
What’s life like for a narwhal?
What do narwhals eat?
Where do narwhals live?
What is the narwhal's tusk?
Narwhals need your help
The main threats...
You can help save narwhals...

Content: What is the narwhal's tusk for? Quite honestly, we don’t know but theories abound. Some believe that males use them to attract females, showing off their ‘manliness’ through jousting matches, others have suggested that it’s used as an ice pick or even an acoustic probe. In 2014 researchers discovered that the tusk is a sensory organ – narwhals can use it to detect changes in the water around them. They can ‘taste’ concentrations of chemicals and perhaps use their tusks to find food or females who are ready to mate. In 2017, drone footage revealed narwhals stunning fish with their tusk before eating them. It seems the more we discover, the deeper the mystery becomes! Hide dive deeper
Narwhals need your help
These strange and mysterious beings face some serious threats from human activity. The main threats...
Whaling – Inuit people in Canada and Greenland kill narwhals for their blubber and tusks. Climate change – global warming is causing sea ice to melt leaving narwhals vulnerable to getting trapped and leading to more hunting and human activity in their Arctic home.