Back to My Page                                                                                                                                         John Hines

Sept. 22, 2003

 

Narwhal

 

The narwhal is a unique looking marine animal. This small whale is recognized by its spiraled tusk that can grow to be six to ten feet long.  The male can grow to fifteen feet long and the female can grow to be thirteen feet long This animal weighs almost two tons.  The narwhals color is mottled white with dark melon and a dark strip down its back it also has brown and gray fleck with leopard spots on it.  It has up curled flippers.  The narwhal has unique charastiscs that make them easy to recognize. 

The narwhal mostly lives in cold water.  It lives near Baffin island and the artic ice-edge.  The male makes a year round home in the artic water.  It lives near the sea of ice in the artic.  They like to live in salty water.  The narwhal lives near the artic because it likes cold water.

The narwhal is a carnivore.  It eats octopus, squid, fish, shrimp, crabs, and cuttlefish.  The male and female eat the same food.  This animal creates a vacuum and sucks up their food.  It is uncertain whether or not the narwhal uses its tusk in feeding.  The narwhal likes to eat small seafood easy to suck up. 

The life cycle of a typical narwhal is long and interesting.  Baby narwhals are born every three years.  The young are completely white with no teeth .  It stays with its mom more than a year.  They live for 50 years.

The narwhals behavior is interesting.  It whistles, yelps, and yips to communicate.  They also use sonar to get to his location.  They live in groups of 1-25, but immigrate in hundreds or even thousands. 

 The dangers and protections of the narwhal are cool and interesting.  Native hunters, Killer whales are enimes of the narwhal.  Natives hunters kill narwhals by wating for the blowhole to appear and then they kill it by harpuning it.  To escape killer whales they hide in an aria under the ice where killer whales cant eat them.   It has no dorsal fin so can go very close to the icy serfes and killer whales cant eat them.

Here are the interesting facts.  It is sometimes is called the unicorn whale.  Long time ago people beleved that narwhals tooth brought good luck.  If it got stuck under the ice it can break though with its tooth.  It has no dorsal fin so it can swim under ice.