Narwhals
Introduction
Do you like unicorns? How about beluga whales? If you answered yes to both of these, you have got to love narwhals. You’ve probably heard of them, but do you really know EVERYTHING about them? That’s when I come in. Today, you’ll learn more about narwhals than you’ll ever want to know. And that’s a good thing. Characteristics If you want to learn about narwhals, you must know how they act. That is called their characteristics. First of all, narwhals are HUGE animals. And huge animals they are. A single narwhal calf (baby) is 5 feet long! Imagine how long a grown male narwhal is! Female narwhals can weigh up to 2,200 lbs., whereas males can weigh up to 4,000 lbs. Narwhals are known as the “unicorns of the sea”. They have earned their nickname because their large tusk on their head resemble a unicorn’s horn. Unicorns are believed to use their horns for magic and whatnot, however, narwhals tusks serve...no purpose at all! Maybe they just really wanted to look like a unicorn. Although, sometimes male narwhals go tusking. Tusking is when male narwhals rub their tusks together, just to scream, “Hey! I’m the one who’s the boss here!” Female narwhals are able to start breeding at 6-8 years old. They find a mate in springtime, and then next year, they give birth in summer. And a fun fact: females live longer than males! Girl power! Narwhals make “clicks” and “whistles” to communicate, just like dolphins. Did you also know that narwhals don’t have any teeth for eating at all? They instead feed on soft food, because of their lack of...teeth. But we’ll elaborate on that later, because after all this talk about how narwhals look, you might want to know where to find one! Habitat You’ve got to remember that narwhals are their own animals. They are not just unicorn replicas. They are whales. So, you won’t find one sitting on land, will you? (No. You won’t.) Narwhals live in the sea. They also like the cold, because more specifically, they live in the icy parts of the arctic sea. I bet that a normal person would HATE to be there! Narwhals also live in packs, because it’s not very wise to wade around in the cold arctic by yourself. Their packs typically contain 5-10 narwhals. That is a great amount of narwhals to be in a pack, because there are many chances that a pack of 10 whales that are 2,200-4,000 lbs. each can PROBABLY scare off one tiny polar bear. But they won’t necessarily scare it off. After all, polar bears are kind of tough. When summer has come, and we’ve forgotten about the cold, you don’t need to pity narwhals. They also go on summer vacation. Instead of sitting in the cold all summer long, they migrate to shallow, ice-free grounds. How smart! I guess everybody likes a summer vacation. Prey Remember when I said that these sea-unicorns have no teeth for eating? Well, they feed on soft prey. Incase you didn’t know, prey are the animals that are fed on by the predators. (Ex. worm is bird’s prey, bird is owl’s prey, etc.) Narwhals munch on squids often, due to their softness. They can dive deep to make a meal out of arctic cods. Those narwhals can also gobble down some turbots. As you can see, all of these prey of narwhals are all very soft. Narwhals take advantage of that. What smart animals! Predators How high are narwhals on the food chain? Well, narwhals are in the middle of the food chain. We’ve talked about the prey. Now, it’s time for the sadder part...predators. Narwhals aren’t very good at not getting eaten. For example, orcas. They don't call them killer whales for nothing. If they are hungry, and they just so happen to spot a narwhal, they’ll all swarm around the poor narwhal. Then, that unfortunate narwhal will become overwhelmed, and then...the orcas will have a…”meal”. And polar bears too. If narwhals are underneath the ice, they will have breathing holes so that they can get some oxygen. But if a polar bear is wading around on the ice, and a narwhal is going up to their breathing hole at the same time, the polar bear will block the narwhal’s breathing hole. Then, oh no! The poor narwhal will suffocate and die. Then that polar bear will make a feast out of the narwhal! Now, last but DEFINITELY not least, humans. Humans? Yes, humans! Humans, people, homo sapiens, eat narwhals. The Inuit, that is. They dine on their blubber and skin. The Inuit are also called Eskimos, just in case you wanted to know. Narwhals have many different types of predators, so narwhals beware! Threats Did reading about narwhals’ predators make you sad? Well, these threats will probably make you even more sad. Narwhal’s IUCN ranking is near threatened. That means they are almost endangered. What is the causes of their near endangerment? Well, many hunters shoot them...just to see them die at the ocean floor! That is unnecessary, and just plain violent! What do hunters have against narwhals anyway? Once again, Inuit dine on their blubber and skin. So, narwhals and Inuit are not very compatible with each other. The biggest threat to narwhals is CLIMATE CHANGE. It is climate change because climate change hugely affects narwhals, changing their lifestyle from carefree and fun, to cautious and deadly. For example, if the climate becomes cold, the ice will become too thick, and if narwhals cannot surface, they will suffocate and die. And if the ice is too thin, predators can easily spot them and attack. Plus, on thin ice, narwhals’ prey will escape, leaving the narwhals to starve to death. Earlier, I said that narwhals make varieties of sounds. (clicks, whistles, etc.) So if a gas carrier ship is crossing paths with a narwhal, and making all of this noise, the narwhals might think that another narwhal is near. It will cluelessly swim up to the gas carrier, and make a collision. Then all that gas and oil will spill. And the narwhal will be left dead. Sadly, it has died whiles searching for an acquaintance. Narwhals also have natural predators, but that can't be helped. Narwhal’s ivory tusks are worth a lot, so many people hunt narwhals to sell their ivory tusks. The rare double-tusked narwhal is hunted often, because their tusks are worth more. As you can see, most of the narwhals’ threats are made by humans. Conclusion Narwhals are fascinating animals. It is too bad that they are near threatened. These sea unicorns do not deserve to go extinct. If you want to save narwhals, you can help stop their biggest threat by simply Googling, “Ways I can help end climate change”. It would be very nice for one day to see a narwhal and know, “I saved them!”. But for now, don't be too worried for these beluga whale siblings! |
Gallery
.Sources
- http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/species/Narwhal.shtml
- http://animals.mom.me/narwhal-characteristics-3502.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narwhal
- http://animals.howstuffworks.com/mammals/narwhal4.htm
- http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/narwhal
- http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/13704/0
- http://www.arkive.org/narwhal/monodon-monoceros/
- http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/narwhal/
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