The Unique Narwhal Trivia Quiz

Answer: Tusk

The long tusk is most commonly found on males; some have two (this is not common) and some don't have one at all. The tusk is actually a canine tooth. It can grow up to ten feet (three meters) long and has millions of nerve endings inside. There are lots of theories about what it is actually used for.

Some of these theories include as a weapon, as a tool to break through ice, as an acoustic organ and as a sexual trait (a way to distinguish who among other males is higher up in the hierarchy based on the size of the tusk).

The general consensus is that the tusk doesn't serve a critical purpose for survival since only about fifteen percent of females have one.

Answer: Arctic waters

Narwhals live in the Arctic waters of Canada, Russia, Greenland and Norway. They do migrate with the seasons. In the winter time they can be found in deep offshore waters under thick ice. In the summer they move closer to coasts. In winter they spend time in areas with very little open water.

They have an amazing ability to deep dive. They have excellent oxygen storage capacity and can dive for up to twenty four minutes and as deep as sixteen hundred meters (over five thousand feet!).

Answer: Dorsal fin

Another unique characteristic of the narwhal's appearance is the fact that it does not have a dorsal fin. Not having a dorsal fin actually benefits the narwhal given where they live. It cuts down on body surface area and allows them to travel closely under ice sheets.

The body shape is stout and shaped like a torpedo and the color changes depending on the age of the narwhal. Newborns are blue-gray, young narwhals are blue-black and adults are mottled gray. They become more mottled as they age.

Answer: One

Females reach sexual maturity between the ages of six and eight years old. They will mate in the months of April or May and gestation lasts for fourteen months. Calves are born the following year in June or July. Females usually give birth to one calf every three years and in general a newborn is one and a half meters long (just over five feet) when born. Adult narwhals are about four to five and a half meters long (between thirteen and eighteen feet) and can weigh between eight hundred and sixteen hundred kilograms (just under eighteen hundred to thirty five hundred pounds).

The males are slightly larger than the females.

Answer: Travel in groups

Narwhals travel in groups of anywhere from five to ten individuals, and sometimes up to twenty at a time. The make-up of the groups can vary. Some are only females and young narwhals, some are young males and there are also mixed groups. In the summertime, these groups can join together so that hundreds of narwhals congregate.

Their social behavior includes rubbing tusks and making sounds to communicate such as clicks, whistles and knocks.

Answer: False

Narwhals have a pretty restricted diet. They feed on the marine life that is available in the frigid Arctic waters and that includes Greenland halibut, Arctic cod, cuttlefish, and shrimp. They don't have well developed or functional teeth and they eat by sucking food into their mouths. They do use the tusk to stun fish which aids them to catch their prey.

Answer: Muktuk

Indigenous peoples of the Arctic have hunted the narwhal for centuries. It is a staple food source as well as providing material to make rope, oil for lamplight, construction material and dog food. The delicacy known as muktuk (also spelled maktaaq and mattak) is made from the skin and blubber of the narwhal (as well as whales) and is mostly eaten raw.

It can also be breaded and deep fried. The skin and tusk of the narwhal are also sold commercially.

Answer: False

For some reason, narwhals do not do well in captivity at all. They get stressed out and their oxygen levels rise and carbon dioxide levels in the blood falls. If a captured narwhal is returned to the ocean, their levels normalize. If not, their levels never normalize and they die.

In 1970 the Vancouver Aquarium became the first Canadian aquarium to have a narwhal exhibit. The intention was to generate interest in and learn about the animal. Six narwhals were captured and brought to the aquarium but tragically within four months every narwhal had died.

There was a positive outcome to this sad event as protection regulations for the species were introduced.

Answer: Orca

Polar bears attack mostly young narwhals, waiting at breathing holes. Orcas, or killer whales, surround narwhal pods, overwhelming them. They can kill multiple narwhals this way. Narwhals can't outswim an orca, so they will submerge under ice floes for long periods of time to try and hide.

They will also pack tightly together and cling to the shoreline to try and thwart the attack. Narwhals are also at risk due to commercial hunting and the import of tusks has been banned in the United States.

Answer: Suffocation

Although research suggests narwhals can live up to about a hundred years old, this is not typical. They typically live about fifty years and one of the most common causes of death is suffocation. Narwhals need to breathe and if they don't leave the open waters in time in the fall, the water freezes over and narwhals become trapped underneath. If they can't break through the thick ice, they suffocate.

In 1915 over one thousand narwhals were trapped underneath ice in West Greenland.