A Post About Narwhals

I chose to write about narwhals because when I first heard about them I honestly thought they were fake. And continued to think so for a little while after(for longer than I'm willing to admit). So I wish to enlighten you a bit about these incredible creatures, the unicorns of the sea.

Narwhals(also known as Monodon monoceros) enhabit the waters near the Arctic Circle. A majority of the narwhals are concentrated off the coast of Canada. The incredibly long horn (where the monoceros part of the name comes from) is actually a tooth that protrudes from the jaws of male narwhals which is a characteristic for sexual selection. They mainly dine on squid and different types of fish.

The narwhal population is estimated to be between 45,000 and 50,000 individuals. This may sound like a lot but in fact, narwhals are a near threatened species and may become extinct fairly soon. Narwhals mate during the spring(March-May) and only produce one calf per litter. However, narwhals are capable of living up until the ripe age of 50 years. Also worth noting, females can only mate once every 3 years so it's no surprise that the population is starting to dwindle.

Another threat to the Narwhal population is the fact that their natural habitats are slowly becoming obsolete due to global warming, much like the polar bears and penguins.


...And really I'm not sure what else you really wanted to know about Narwhals.

Citations(because I'm a good scientist)
http://www.defenders.org/narwhal/basic-facts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narwhal