Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Narwhal
The narwhal an Arctic species of cetacean. It is rarely found south of latitude 70 degrees North. It is one of two species of whale in the Monodontidae family (the other is the beluga whale). The most conspicuous characteristic of male narwhals is their single extraordinarily long tusk, which is a tooth that projects from the left side of the upper jaw and forms a left-handed helix. The tusk can be up to 3 m (nearly 10 ft) long (compared with a body length of 4-5 m [13-16 ft]) and weigh up to 10 kg (22 lb). One in 500 males has two tusks, which occurs when the right tooth, normally small, also grows out. Although rare, a female narwhal may also produce a tusk. Narwhals are quick, active mammals which feed mainly on species of cod that reside under ice-enclosed seas. In some areas their diet seems to have adapted to include squid, shrimp, and various fish, such as schooling pelagic fish, halibut, and redfish. Narwhals normally congregrate in groups of about five to ten.
Related Stories
1
2
Plants & Animals News
June 8, 2026
June 8, 2026 South Australia’s koala population has grown so large that it may be heading toward a self-made disaster, with forests struggling to support the animals. Researchers say targeted fertility control could prevent widespread starvation and habitat ...
June 2, 2026 A massive global analysis found that nitrogen pollution can either speed up or dramatically slow the natural "breathing" of forest soils, depending on the ecosystem's condition. The results reveal hidden tipping points that could affect how forests ...
June 1, 2026 A world-famous conservation program that helped save Sweden’s endangered wolverines is now struggling as funding stagnates and local trust erodes. Researchers say the decline offers a cautionary lesson: protecting wildlife requires long-term ...
May 31, 2026 A surprising new discovery suggests that tiny microbes living inside fish may be helping shape the chemistry of the world’s oceans. Scientists found evidence that bacteria in the guts of marine fish work alongside their hosts to produce calcium ...
May 28, 2026 A casual walk through an Ithaca cemetery led to the discovery of a gigantic hidden bee population — roughly 5.5 million ground-nesting bees packed beneath the soil. Scientists believe it may be one of the largest bee aggregations ever documented ...
May 26, 2026 A sweeping new study of wild snakes in the southeastern US has revealed a hidden health crisis slithering beneath the surface. Researchers found that many snakes are carrying multiple infections at once, with a dangerous fungal disease called ...
May 25, 2026 Scientists have uncovered a surprising twist in how cells behave when division goes wrong. Sometimes a cell successfully copies its DNA but fails to split into two, leaving it with double the genetic material — a mistake linked to aging, cancer, ...
May 24, 2026 Scientists have cracked open the “black box” of feline cancer in a landmark study that genetically analyzed nearly 500 cat tumors from around the world. The research uncovered striking ...
May 21, 2026 Researchers discovered that leucine, a nutrient found in protein-rich foods, can supercharge mitochondria by protecting crucial energy-producing proteins inside cells. The breakthrough uncovers a powerful new link between diet and cellular energy ...
May 21, 2026 MIT scientists have identified cysteine — an amino acid found in foods like meat, dairy, beans, and nuts — as a potent trigger for intestinal repair. In mice, a cysteine-rich diet activated immune cells that released healing signals, helping ...
May 20, 2026 For decades, scientists believed ancient humans avoided dense rainforests, treating them as nearly impossible environments for early survival. But a groundbreaking discovery in West Africa is rewriting that story. Researchers uncovered evidence that ...
May 20, 2026 Scientists in Australia are using cutting-edge DNA techniques to help save one of the world’s rarest marsupials — the critically endangered Gilbert’s potoroo, with fewer than 150 left in the wild. By analyzing tiny traces of DNA in the ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
June 5, 2026 Octopuses may be even smarter than we thought. Researchers at Dartmouth found that octopuses can learn to use mirrors to locate food hidden behind them—a skill previously seen only in vertebrates ...
June 5, 2026 New studies suggest consciousness can't be judged solely by behavior, whether it's a chatbot discussing philosophy or a bee searching for nectar. Researchers are increasingly focusing on the internal ...
June 4, 2026 Scientists examining amber from Goethe’s personal collection discovered three hidden fossil insects, including an extinct ant preserved in extraordinary detail. Advanced 3D imaging allowed ...
June 4, 2026 Hidden beneath Arctic waters, beluga whales have long kept their family lives a mystery. By analyzing DNA from more than 600 belugas in Alaska’s Bristol Bay over 13 years, researchers uncovered a ...
June 2, 2026 Deer keds rely on flight and vision to find a host, but everything changes once they land. After shedding their wings forever, these parasites reduce the activity of key vision-related genes by about ...
June 2, 2026 Researchers found that social behavior begins in the brain before it becomes visible as movement. In zebrafish, a coordinated pattern of activity spread across the brain several seconds before the ...
June 1, 2026 A major mouse study found that some inherited traits are passed down through epigenetic changes that break the classic rules of genetics. Researchers discovered hundreds of cases where these chemical ...
May 31, 2026 Great apes appear to build friendships much like humans do. By studying grooming behavior, researchers discovered that chimpanzees and bonobos form close inner circles along with wider networks of ...
May 31, 2026 Scientists have uncovered a surprising navigation system in pigeons: iron-filled immune cells in the liver that may act like tiny magnetic sensors. Birds deprived of these cells struggled to find ...
May 29, 2026 Scientists have discovered Labrujasuchus expectatus, a bizarre crocodile relative that looked more like an ostrich-like dinosaur than anything ...