Narwhal is a sea animal with a horn. Whale narwhal - unicorn of the ocean depths Narwhal facts

Narwhal is a marine animal of the narwhal family. Belongs to one of the species of whales.

Narwhal - amazing representative cetaceans

Appearance

The length of this animal is 4.5 meters in an adult, and 1.5 meters in a cub. The weight of males reaches 1.5 tons, of which more than half of the weight is fat. The females of these animals weigh a little less, 900 kilograms. with their own external similarities, these animals are similar to beluga whales.

Why does a narwhal need a horn?

Often, this part of the body is called a horn, but in fact, it is a tusk, which is 2-3 meters long and weighs about 10 kilograms. These tusks in both females and males are quite strong and have characteristic feature bend in any direction, up to thirty centimeters in length and without breaking.

So why does the narwhal have this tusk?

Until now, the functions of the tusk have not been studied, but scientists know for certain that it is not intended for attacking prey or breaking through ice crusts. A version was voiced that this animal needs it to carry out mating games and attract a female.

This is due to the fact that narwhals constantly rub themselves with these tusks. But later, in 2005, a special expedition that observed the life of narwhals came to the conclusion that this tusk turns out to be a very sensitive organ. Upon careful study, many different nerve endings were discovered on its surface. So it was suggested that the tusk also serves to determine temperature and electromagnetic frequencies.

Where do narwhals live?

These massive animals live in harsh climates. Namely, in the Arctic. They feed on various mollusks and fish. They prefer exclusively bottom fish such as cod, halibut, flounder and gobies. The enemies of these fearless-looking animals are and.

The meat of these animals is consumed in various northern peoples. They use fat as a means for a lamp. While the intestines are used to make various ropes. And this mysterious horn, or tusk, from which many crafts are made, is especially valued.

Narwhals are long-lived

These animals live about 55 years, but in captivity they cannot live even six months. The narwhal can be considered one of the most amazing animals that belongs to the cetacean family. As numerous observations of these animals show, females live longer than males.

Legends and beliefs about these animals

In ancient times, many people were already familiar with the narwhal, and among them it bore the name “ sea unicorn" Magicians and sorcerers attributed magical properties to narwhal tusks and added them to their potions. For a long time it was used as a ritual attribute.

Healers claimed that a decoction of ground tusk could cure any disease. These animals were constantly hunted; their tusks were exchanged for food, and sometimes even for gold. In the mid-twentieth century, narwhal hunting was banned, but this ban was not effective. Tracking the poachers was not so easy. Large territory and the impassable terrain prevented this.

As a result, this issue was never resolved. The same northern peoples make their homes from the skin of this animal. They say that narwhal fat helps with cold and prevents the body from freezing if you spread it on it.

They are going to hunt this beast the whole family. One person places special baits, while the other attracts the animal with characteristic sounds. This is usually done in places where there is a hole.

As soon as the animal appears on the surface of the water, they beat it with sharp objects and wait until it dies. After this, the whole family begins to pull him out of the water. As a rule, they are butchered there, since the weight of the narwhal does not allow them to carry it away entirely.

Polynya - an opportunity to breathe

On the one hand, this is, of course, barbarism, and on the other, these people, deprived of another type of food, will simply die without this animal. To date, the population of these animals is not in danger.

The chain of areas of non-freezing water, uniting permanent polynyas, is called the Arctic ring of life. It is here, and not at all to the tropics, that guillemots, guillemots, many gulls and other sea gulls flock for the winter. arctic birds. Seals and seals, polar bears stay here all winter, and Arctic foxes also come here from the mainland. These polynyas are the ancestral patrimony of our amazing northern whale - narwhal, or unicorn .

Dimensions. The largest male narwhals are just over 6 meters and weigh approximately a ton. Females are smaller - up to 5 m. There are small eyes on the sides of the round forehead of the head. The narwhal does not have the usual dolphin "beak". The mouth is small, located below the head, covered by a short wedge-shaped lower jaw with a fleshy lip; the upper lip protrudes forward beyond the lower lip and in males is pierced by a tusk. On the back, instead of a fin, like a beluga whale, there is a longitudinal and narrow leathery fold up to 5 cm high and 75 cm long.

Color. The color of adults is white below, spotted above; dark spots on a light background are denser in the anterior part of the body, especially on the head, sometimes almost black, and also on the edge of the caudal peduncle. Females have slightly smaller spots than males. The lightest are the oldest individuals. The suckers are plain dark gray.

Narwhals belong to the dolphin family, a suborder of toothed whales. But narwhals are toothless creatures. The lower jaw has no teeth at all. The upper one has only two rudiments. In the female they never erupt. With age, the length index of the pectoral fins, like the number of phalanges in the fingers, decreases. The narwhal's skull is flattened and asymmetrical (in males to a greater extent than in females), with a wide rostrum.

Suckers can have up to 4 pairs of upper teeth, but 3 pairs soon fall out, and from the fourth pair, males develop a tusk 2-3 m long, 7-10 cm thick and weighing almost 16 kg. Only extremely rarely do both teeth develop into tusks; just as rarely in males the left fang does not turn into a tusk and remains as small as the right one. Spiral flow (cutting) on the surface of the tusk, which increases its strength, is formed over a long time: during the operation of the tail blades and the forward movement of the animal, the tusk, resisting the water, very slowly rotates around its axis, and the uneven walls of the hole cut spiral patterns on the surface of the growing tusk grooves. A narrow dental canal runs through the entire shaft, which ends where the smooth tip begins, representing the remnant of the tooth that lay in the hole before cutting. If the tusk breaks, the pulp in the tooth canal forms a bone plug. Breakdowns often occur, since the main function of the tusk is to break holes in the ice (during frontal impacts).

Some polar explorers believe that tusks are necessary for males during mating tournaments. Indeed, observing the behavior of narwhals in breeding waters, scientists noticed that the animals often crossed their weapons. However, no one saw it come to serious brawls.

It is believed that tusks help whales during hunting. A school of males surrounds a school of cod or haddock in a large arc. But when the climax of the hunt comes, the peaks are not used. At shallow depths in transparent ocean water I managed to see how narwhals used their tusks to scare bottom-dwelling fish from the ground. It is possible that fish lying on the bottom are difficult for animals to notice and awkward to grab. However, this is unlikely to be of significant importance. Otherwise, nature would not deprive the females, who especially need to have plenty of food and be well nourished in order to feed their young.

A fast-swimming herd of narwhals looks impressive. The animals stay close together and perform all maneuvers synchronously. Males look no less impressive when they rest calmly on the surface of the sea. Their long tusks are directed forward, sometimes upward and seem to be directed towards the sky.

Spreading. Narwhals are typical inhabitants of the Arctic. The range includes the Arctic Ocean with all its seas, the waters of the Canadian Archipelago, Greenland (Davis Strait, Hudson and Baffin Bays to Smith Strait), Spitsbergen, Dixon Island, Severnaya Zemlya, New Siberian Islands, Wrangel Island. More often found near Greenland and the northern parts of the Canadian archipelago, and in our country - northeast of Franz Josef Land and north of Spitsbergen; very rare between the mouth of the river. Kolyma and Cape Barrow, which is likely due to the rarity of cephalopods (its food) in the area.

Floating stations " North Pole» 2, 4 and 5 observed narwhal in June, July and August north of Wrangel Island, De Long Islands and between Franz Josef Land and Severnaya Zemlya.
The most northern encounters were noted at 85° N. sh., and the most southern (all in winter) - off the Murmansk coast, Mezen Bay, in the White Sea, at the mouth of the Pechora, in the Bering Strait, off St. Lawrence Island, in the Gulf of Port Moller (Alaska Peninsula) and even off Bering Island. In the waters Western Europe visits are noted even further south - to Great Britain and Holland.

Eating They are mainly cephalopods, but do not disdain fish (rays, flounder, halibut, cod, salmon, herring), eating mainly bottom-dwelling slow-moving representatives of the ichthyofauna. Apparently, they are easier to catch with the narwhal's toothless mouth. In search of food, they dive almost half a kilometer and remain under water for a long time. In search of food, they sometimes come close to the shores (the straits of the Franz Josef Archipelago, the Eclipse Strait, etc.).

Behavior. Previously, the herds were larger (up to several thousand heads), but currently they do not exceed hundreds of heads. Beluga whales often join narwhal herds. In places where these cetaceans gather, large flocks of birds (fullmars, guillemots, gulls, skuas) are observed, possibly attracted by the common food.

Frosts are not scary for narwhals. If the sea is covered fresh ice, the largest male pierces it with his powerful tusk and back. A small hole is formed, which, if the frost is not severe, the narwhals manage to keep free of ice for a long time. In severe frosts, the entire herd gathers at one outlet. They sometimes spend several months at such outlets. And this is not an emergency situation. Living in such winter apartments is not uncommon.

Narwhals stay underwater for quite a long time. During this time, they walk several kilometers, scouring a huge area, and find enough food for themselves. In winter, like most cetaceans, narwhals apparently do not feed at all.

However, wintering in the Arctic does not always go well. When significant ice movements occur, the leads often close, and separate groups narwhals find themselves trapped in small holes. The water in them seems to be boiling with animals trying to break to the surface for a breath of air. It is possible that many narwhals die under such conditions.

Sometimes a polar bear comes to small openings where narwhals gather. Without thinking, he jumps on the unicorn's back, kills it and drags it onto the ice. It happens that the polar wanderer is not limited to a single victim. Hidden near the wormwood, a predator with a strong blow paws kills and drags narwhals onto the ice one by one when the whales emerge to breathe. One day, polar explorers discovered a bear's nest, near which there were 21 narwhal carcasses neatly stacked. This supply could be enough for a clubfoot hunter to last more than one winter. Usually polar bear, if he is not very hungry, he eats only the entrails and fat of the narwhal, almost leaving the rest alone. Only a mother bear and her cubs, who have recently left their den, find a taste for dolphin meat.

Narwhal is:

Kingdom - Animals

Type - Chordata

Subphylum - Vertebrates

Class - Mammals

Order - Cetaceans

Family - Unicorns

Species - Narwhal

Narwhal (unicorn) is a mammal that belongs to the unicorn family and is the only species of the narwhal genus.

An adult narwhal has a body length of approximately 3.5 to 4.5 meters, while a newly born one is about 1.5 meters. Weight can reach 1.5 tons, and females weigh slightly less, about 900 kg, with approximately a third of the weight being fat. The dorsal fin is missing. The head has a round shape, and a frontal tubercle that hangs over it. The narwhal's mouth is small and located at the bottom. By appearance and the size of the narwhal is very similar to the beluga whale, but adult individuals have grayish-brown spots on a light body that can merge, and the narwhal also has only 2 teeth on top. The narwhal's horn develops from the left tooth and reaches a length of up to 2-3 meters, weighs up to 10 kg, and is twisted in a left-hand spiral. The right tooth in males and both teeth in females, as a rule, do not erupt and are hidden in the gums. There are cases, approximately 1 in 500, exceptions to the rules. If the tusk is broken, it does not grow back, but the tooth canal, which turns out to be open in this case, is closed with a bone filling. The narwhal's tusk is very elastic and durable; its end can bend up to 31 cm in any direction without damage.

To date, the exact purpose of the tusk has not been clarified. But it is known that it is not an attack weapon and does not serve to break through ice. However, it is believed that the tusk is a sensitive organ, and it is riddled with millions of small tubes with nerve endings, this was revealed under an electron microscope. It is also assumed that the narwhal uses its tusk to sense changes occurring in the water. And when narwhals cross their tusks, they apparently clean off growths from them.

The narwhal's habitat is the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic, that is, in cold waters along the edge of the Arctic ice. This is mainly the Canadian archipelago and the shores of Greenland, as well as the waters of Spitsbergen, Franz Josef Land, the northern tip of the North Island New Earth. To the north, to 85 northern latitude, narwhals swim in warm weather, and in winter they can swim south to Great Britain and the Netherlands, the Murmansk coast, White Sea and the Bering Islands making seasonal migrations. IN summer time Narwhals stay at depth, unlike, for example, beluga whales. And in cold times they live among the ice, and if these gaps freeze, then the narwhals break through the ice by striking with their backs or tusks. The thickness of the ice that narwhals can break through is about 5 cm.

The narwhal's diet consists mainly of cephalopods, crustaceans and fish get there a little less often. As a rule, they like to feast on bottom representatives of the ichthyofauna - cod, stingrays, halibut, flounder, gobies. The narwhal can dive 1 km for food and remain at depth for a long time. It is also known that the narwhal lifts bottom-dwelling fish from the bottom with the help of its tusks.

In addition to humans, the narwhal has other enemies, these are polar bears, killer whales and polar sharks, the latter attack the cubs.

Narwhals swim either alone or in small schools of 6-10 individuals. Such flocks consist of males or females with cubs. Previously, large groups of several hundred or even thousands of individuals were noticed. In groups, narwhals talk to each other with sharp sounds that resemble whistles, sighs, moos, clicks, gurgles and squeaks. Narwhals mate mainly in the spring. The gestation period lasts 14-15 months, after which 1, rarely 2 cubs are born. Puberty occurs at the age of 4-7 years, at this time males grow up to 4 meters in length, and females up to 3.4 meters. Narwhals live very short lives in captivity, up to 4 months, and do not reproduce, but in the wild they live up to 55 years.

Narwhals are caught mainly by northern peoples, in particular Eskimos. They eat meat, use the fat to fuel lamps as oil, and use the intestines to make ropes. Crafts are made from tusks. In 1976, the Canadian government introduced restrictive measures on narwhal fishing.

The narwhal population numbers approximately 40-50 thousand individuals. This species is listed in the Red Book of Russia and is considered rare.

Narwhal – marine mammal from the order of cetaceans, the only representative of the narwhal genus from the narwhal (unicorn) family. The animal is included in the Red Book of Russia with the status of a rare small species.

Appearance of a narwhal

Narwhal is a large sea animal, the length of which can reach 4.5 meters, and the weight of 1.5 tons, while about a third of the total weight is a thick layer of fat that protects the narwhal from the cold.

Narwhal head unusual shape: round with a protruding forehead.

The mouth and eyes are small, the upper fin is absent, the lateral fins are small and slightly elongated. The coloring of narwhals is light on the belly and sides and dark on the top. There are many spots scattered throughout the body. The narwhal has no lower teeth and only two upper teeth. Moreover, in males, one of the teeth develops into long horn- a tusk that has a spiral appearance and can reach three meters in length. There are isolated cases when not one, but two teeth turn into tusks.

The tusk is very strong, elastic and so flexible that it can bend in different sides up to 30 cm and not break. If, for some reason, a tusk breaks, then a second one does not grow back, and the broken site is covered with a special bone filling to protect the nerve endings. Scientists have not yet come to a consensus on why narwhals need such a tusk. There are suggestions that with the help of such a horn, narwhals protect themselves from enemies, break through a thick layer of ice, or attract females during the mating season.

There is also a version that with the help of thousands of nerve endings located in the tusk, narwhals can determine the temperature and pressure of water.

Narwhal habitat

The animal lives in the high latitudes of the Arctic Ocean. It is found in the areas of the islands of Spitsbergen and Franz Josef Land, near Greenland and the Canadian archipelago.

Narwhal migrations depend on the movement of drifting Arctic ice. Seen less frequently near the coast, more often swimming in deeper latitudes. The most southern territories where narwhals were observed: In the area of Great Britain and the Netherlands, off the coast of Murmansk, in the White Sea, and off Bering Island.

Character and behavior of the narwhal

Narwhals have adapted to live among Arctic ice. A thick layer of fat protects them from low temperatures air and water. With the help of their tusk, narwhals can break through ice up to 5 cm thick in order to emerge and take a breath of air. Often a whole group of narwhals gathers near one hole, in which everyone takes turns breathing air. The food of these animals is quite varied. They can feed on cephalopods, crustaceans and fish. To find food, narwhals dive to depths of up to 800 meters and eat fish located in the bottom area.

Most often, animals swim in small groups, communicating with each other using different sounds: clicks, groans, sighs, etc.

Number of narwhal individuals

Accurate still unknown. This is largely due to the difficulty of studying and observing them due to the fact that they live in places inaccessible to humans.

According to scientists, the estimated number of narwhals is about 40-50 thousand individuals.

The main limiting factors include pollution of the World Ocean, as well as fishing and poaching. The peoples of Canada and Greenland still kill narwhals and use their fat and meat as food, and create various crafts and souvenirs from the tusks. A natural factor influencing the number of narwhals is the attack of predators: polar bears, walruses and sharks.

Narwhal breeding

The mating season for narwhals occurs throughout the year, but the peak of activity occurs in the spring. A pregnant female carries a baby for about a year, one baby is born, very rarely two. The cubs are born up to one and a half meters in size and feed on milk for about two years. At the age of 5-7 years, narwhals reach sexual maturity.

Their lifespan is about 50 years. In captivity, narwhals quickly die without surviving even six months due to pneumonia or other lung diseases.

Narwhal in the red book

The narwhal is listed in the International Red Book with the status of a species close to vulnerable. In Canada and Greenland, there are restrictive measures on the fishing of these animals: a ban on hunting pregnant females or individuals with cubs, the introduction of a special quota for their catch, etc.

In Russia, the narwhal is also listed in the Red Book and fishing for this animal is completely prohibited. Researching and studying narwhals is quite difficult for scientists, because they do not tolerate captivity well and die quickly, and in natural conditions they live in hard-to-reach places.

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The unicorn exists, but it does not live in fairy forests, and in the chilly waters of the Arctic, and his name is narwhal. This toothed whale is armed with a straight horn (tusk), often equal to half the length of its powerful body.

Description of the narwhal

Monodon monoceros is a member of the narwhal family, representing the only species in the narwhal genus. Besides him, in the narwhal family (Monodontidae) there is only the beluga whale, which has similar morphological and immunological characteristics.

Appearance

The narwhal is similar to the beluga whale not only in the size/shape of the body - both whales do not have dorsal fin, identical pectoral fins and... babies (beluga whales give birth to dark blue offspring that turn white as they grow older). An adult narwhal grows up to 4.5 m with a weight of 2–3 tons. Ketologists assure that this is not the limit - if you are lucky, you can get 6-meter specimens.

About a third of the weight is fat, and the fat layer itself (protecting the animal from the cold) is approximately 10 cm. The small, blunt head is set on a weakly defined neck: the spermaceti cushion, slightly hanging over the upper jaw, is responsible for the overall roundness of the outline. The narwhal's mouth is relatively small, and the upper lip slightly overlaps the fleshy lower lip, which is completely devoid of teeth.

Important! The narwhal could be considered completely toothless if not for a pair of rudimentary teeth found on the upper jaw. The right one erupts extremely rarely, and the left one turns into the famous 2-3-meter tusk, wrapped in a left spiral.

Despite its impressive appearance and weight (up to 10 kg), the tusk is extremely strong and flexible - its end can bend up to 0.3 m without the threat of being broken. However, tusks sometimes break off and do not grow back, and their dental canals are tightly sealed with bone fillings. The role of the dorsal fin is performed by a low (up to 5 cm) leathery fold (0.75 m in length), located on the barely convex back. Pectoral fins The narwhal's are wide but short.

The sexually mature narwhal differs from its closest relative (the beluga whale) by its recognizable spotted coloring. On the general light background of the body (on the head, sides and back) there are many dark spots irregular shape up to 5 cm in diameter. The spots often merge, especially on the upper areas of the head/neck and caudal peduncle, creating single dark areas. Young narwhals are usually colored monochrome - bluish-gray, black-gray or slate.

Character and lifestyle

Narwhals are social animals that form huge herds. The most numerous communities consist of mature males, young animals and females, and small ones consist of females with cubs or sexually mature males. According to ketologists, narwhals used to gather in huge herds, numbering up to several thousand individuals, but now the group size rarely exceeds hundreds of animals.

This is interesting! In summer, narwhals (unlike beluga whales) prefer to stay in deep waters, and in winter they stay in ice holes. When the latter are covered with ice, the males use their strong backs and tusks, breaking the ice crust (up to 5 cm in thickness).

From the outside, fast-swimming narwhals look quite impressive - they keep up with each other, performing synchronized maneuvers. These whales are no less picturesque in moments of rest: they lie on the surface of the sea, pointing their impressive tusks forward or upward, towards the sky. Narwhals live in the icy waters surrounding arctic ice, and resort to seasonal migrations based on the movement of floating ice.

By winter, whales move south, and in summer they migrate north. Beyond the boundaries of polar waters below 70° N. sh., narwhals come out only in winter and extremely rarely. Periodically, males cross their horns, which ketologists regard as a way to free their tusks from foreign growths. Narwhals can talk and do it very willingly, emitting (depending on the occasion) squeals, moos, clicks, whistles and even groans with sighs.

How long does a narwhal live?

Biologists are convinced that natural environment Narwhals live for at least half a century (up to 55 years). In captivity, the species does not take root and does not reproduce: the captured narwhal did not last even 4 months in captivity. To keep a narwhal in artificial tanks, it is not only too large, but also quite finicky, as it needs special water parameters.

Sexual dimorphism

The difference between male and female individuals can be seen primarily in size - females are smaller and rarely approach a ton in weight, gaining about 900 kg. But the fundamental difference lies in the teeth, or rather, in the left upper tooth piercing upper lip male and growing 2–3 m, twisting into a tight corkscrew.

Important! The right tusks (in both sexes) are hidden in the gums, developing extremely rarely - in approximately 1 case out of 500. In addition, sometimes a long tusk breaks through in the female. Hunters came across female narwhals with a pair of tusks (right and left).

However, ketologists classify the tusk as a secondary sexual characteristic of males, but still debate about its functions. Some biologists believe that males use their tusks to mating games, attracting partners or measuring strength with competitors (in the second case, narwhals rub their tusks).

Other uses for tusks include:

stabilization of the body (protecting it from rotation along the axis) during swimming with circular movements of the caudal fin;
providing oxygen to the remaining members of the herd, devoid of horns - with the help of tusks, males break the ice, creating outlets for relatives;
the use of a tusk as a hunting weapon, which was captured by video filming conducted by specialists from the WWF Polar Research Department in 2017;
protection from natural enemies.

In addition, in 2005, thanks to research by a group led by Martin Nweeia, it was found that the narwhal tusk is a kind of sensory organ. The bone tissue of the tusk was examined under an electron microscope and it was found that it was penetrated by millions of tiny canals with nerve endings. Biologists have put forward a hypothesis according to which the narwhal's tusk responds to changes in temperature and pressure, and also determines the concentration of suspended particles in sea water.

Range, habitats

The narwhal lives in the North Atlantic, as well as in the Kara, Chukotka and Barents Seas, attributed to the Northern Arctic Ocean. It is found mainly near Greenland, the Canadian archipelago and Spitsbergen, as well as in the north of the North Island of Novaya Zemlya and off the coast of Franz Josef Land.

Narwhals are recognized as the most northern of all cetaceans, as they live between 70° and 80° north latitude. In summer, the northernmost migrations of the narwhal extend to 85° N. sh., in winter southern approaches are observed - to the Netherlands and Great Britain, Bering Island, the White Sea and the Murmansk coast.

The traditional habitats of the species are ice-free polynyas in the center of the Arctic, which are rarely covered in ice even in the most severe winters. These oases among the ice remain unchanged from year to year, and the most remarkable of them are given their own names. One of the most notable, the Great Siberian Polynya, is located near the New Siberian Islands. Their permanent polynyas are noted at east coast Taimyr, Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya.

This is interesting! The Arctic ring of life is the name given to the chain of ice-free areas sea water, which connects permanent polynyas (traditional habitats of narwhals) with each other.

The migration of animals is determined by the advance/retreat of ice. In general, these northern whales have a rather limited range, as they are more picky about their habitat. They prefer deep waters, entering bays/fjords in summer and practically never leaving the loose ice. The largest population of narwhals now lives in Davis Strait, the Greenland Sea and the Baffin Sea, but the largest population is recorded in northwest Greenland and in the waters of the eastern Canadian Arctic.