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Today on Animal Fact Files we’ll be talking about narwhals. Be sure to subscribe to the channel if you would like learn more facts about different types of animals.

Narwhals where requested by Charlie Yang and we’re happy to be discussing them as our first oceanic mammal. That’s right, although they might look fish-like they are indeed mammals - just like an elephant or a house cat - meaning they are warm-blooded (or endothermic) and produce milk for their young - among other mammal-specific traits.

Probably their most defining characteristic is their large, long tusk at the front of their face which has aided them in earning their name “the unicorn of the sea.” Their tusk is in fact a tooth that has grown through the narwhal’s upper lip and protrudes up to ten feet (3.05m) from their head. Talk about having a serious headache. While this tusk is most prominent in males it is also possible for females to produce a tusk, though a female’s tusk will not usually grow as long as a male’s. In rare cases, narwhals can have two tusks with their second tooth - the only other tooth in their mouth - protruding out as well (though not as far as the primary tooth).

Usually the primary tusk is the narwhal’s left tooth and the tusk will spiral to the left. In medieval times, narwhal tusks were sold as “unicorn horns.” They were believed to hold special healing properties among other curative means. Ground down narwhal tusks, commonly called “unicorn dust”, were given as a medical treatment to ailing patients, and it wasn’t until the 17th century that this concept was refuted.

The purpose of a narwhal’s tusk is still up for debate in the scientific community but there are a number of theories, many with research to back them up. For a long time, it was thought that the tusk was simply a part of narwhal mating habits - kind of like a deer with large antlers or a peafowl with long tail feathers. Since females generally lack a tusk it was believed that the tusk didn’t benefit narwhal survival. However, in recent years, we’ve discovered that the narwhal’s tusk is full of nerve endings and is used as a sensory organ. More research needs to be completed on this, but one possibility is that narwhals are able to tell the salinity of the water around them - or basically how salty their environment is - by means of their tusk.

Another observation is use of the tusk to stun prey. This had previously been described by hunters indigenous to narwhal habitats and there is now video evidence to help substantiate it. We’re fairly certain that they don’t use their tusk for fighting but we have observed males performing a behavior called “tusking” in which they joust with this long, pointed tooth but in a way in which the participants do not typically become harmed. While it may be a beneficial adaptation there are still the vast majority of female narwhals surviving without a tusk - leave a comment with your theory on these giant whale teeth!

Speaking of whales, narwhals are whales that belong to the Monodontidae family and are closely related to belugas. Their scientific name Monodon monoceros somewhat appropriately means “one tooth, one horn” but their common name “narwhal” is thought to be derived from the Icelandic words for corpse and whale. So… narwhals are corpse whales. Does that mean we can call them zombies??? Really, though, it’s believed narwhals were named this because they appear mottled in color.

These mottled markings are pretty uncommon among whale species so some thought that their dark spots looked like rotting flesh… or something like that. These old sailors with their fish stories and bad eyes! First mermaids and now corpse whales. Corpse whale is my new band name, by the way. Anyway, getting back on track - Narwhals can live fifty years in the wild but they don’t do well in captivity. This has made researching them more difficult especially since they live in some pretty extreme environments.

Narwhals are found in the Arctic regions of Greenland, Canada, Norway, and Russia. During the summer they stay closer to shore traveling in groups called pods of anywhere between 10 and 100 or more individuals. During the winter they travel to deeper waters covered by pack ice. It’s during this time they will stock up on food supplies favoring shrimp, squid, cuttlefish, cod and halibut caught from the ocean floor. Narwhals are able to dive nearly a mile below the ocean’s surface (1.61km) to find these tasty treats.

Narwhals also reproduce at this time. A female will gestate, or remain pregnant, for up to 16 months and her calf will stay with her for more than a year nursing and learning the ropes of narwhal life. By the time a calf reaches adulthood it can grow to be more than 15 feet (4.57m) long and that’s not including that insane tusk. Plus, since narwhals live in cold environments, they need a lot of insulation, so they pack on the pounds in fat and blubber. A full-grown narwhal can weigh almost two tons, or to put that into perspective 400 Chesters.

While we’re not sure how many of these magnificent creatures swim in our oceans it’s guessed that there are somewhere around 80,000 individuals, though higher and lower numbers have been cited. Because they require such specific conditions for living they are greatly impacted by environmental changes just like the polar bear who shares their environment. While a narwhal’s natural predators include these bears and killer whales alike, they also face the impact of environmental changes. By making efforts to go green in our daily lives, we have the power to make sure these unicorns don’t become a fantasy.

For more facts on narwhals please check out the links in the description. Let us know what you think of these awesome animals in the comments. We hope you learned something new today; thank you again to Charlie Yang for the suggestion! Please be sure to give a thumbs up and we’ll see you next time on Animal Fact Files.