AnimalvsAnimal
Нарвал у островов Карла-Александра и Джексона (северная часть архипелага Земля Франца-Иосифа), июнь 2019🐋

Photo: пресс-служба ПАО "Газпром нефть" · CC BY-SA 4.0

SpeciesCetaceaMonodontidae
Marine mammals

🐋Narwhal

Monodon monoceros Linnaeus, 1758

The narwhal is a species of toothed whale native to the Arctic. It is the only member of the genus Monodon and one of two living representatives of the family Monodontidae. The narwhal is a stocky cetacean with a relatively blunt snout, a large melon, and a shallow ridge in place of a dorsal fin. Males of this species have a spiralled tusk that is 1.5–3.0 m (4.9–9.8 ft) long, which is a protruding left canine thought to function as a weapon, a tool for feeding, in attracting mates or sensing water salinity. Specially adapted slow-twitch muscles, along with the jointed neck vertebrae and shallow dorsal ridge allow for easy movement through the Arctic environment, where the narwhal spends extended periods at great depths. The narwhal's geographic range overlaps with that of the similarly built and closely related beluga whale, and the animals are known to interbreed.

Text: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Videos
7
Photos
6
Measurements
11
vs you
≈ 15× your weight
Also called
Unicorn Whale
Conservation status
LCLeast concern

IUCN Red List assessment, 2017.

Population trendUnknown
Key measurements
Body mass
938 kg
Body length
5.65 m
Shoulder height
not recorded
Top speed
not recorded
Bite force
not recorded
Maximum lifespan
50 years
All measurements ↓
Facts and figures

Everything we know about the Narwhal

Typical adult figures. Where a value is an estimate rather than a measurement, it says so.

Body mass
938 kgrecord 1,600 kg · SeaLifeBase
COMBINE
Other figures ↓

Record: largest individual on record

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Figures vary

  • 1,250 kgAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Body length
5.65 m
COMBINE
Other figures ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

By sex

  • Female4.2 mSeaLifeBasev25.04

Figures vary

  • 4.7 mSeaLifeBasev25.04
Brain mass
2,997 g
COMBINE
Details ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Maximum lifespan
50 yearsrecord 115 years · SeaLifeBase
COMBINE
Other figures ↓

Record: largest individual on record

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Figures vary

  • 50 yearsAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Generation length
24 years
COMBINE
Details ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Age at maturity
7.1 years
COMBINE
Details ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Gestation
1.2 years
COMBINE
Other figures ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Figures vary

  • 1.2 yearsAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Litter size
1
COMBINE
Other figures ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Figures vary

  • 1AnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Trophic level
Carnivore
COMBINE
Details ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Activity cycle
Crepuscular / mixedestimated
COMBINE
Details ↓

Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0

Volume l
938 Laverage
Details ↓

Body mass at ~1.0 kg/L, the density of vertebrate tissue.

estimated = a model's estimate for a species nobody has measured; average = a mean across sexes or species in a group.

Not recorded for Narwhal yet: shoulder height, top speed, bite force.

Where it sits

Family tree

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. ›phylumChordata
  3. ›classMammalia
  4. ›orderCetacea
  5. ›familyMonodontidae
  6. ›genusMonodon
  7. ›speciesMonodon monoceros
Full lineage
  1. classMammals · Mammalia
  2. orderEven-toed hoofed animals · Artiodactyla
  3. infraorderWhales & dolphins · Cetacea
  4. genusMonodon
All 15 branches ↓
  1. kingdomMetazoa
  2. phylumChordata
  3. subphylumCraniata
  4. subphylumVertebrata
  5. superclassGnathostomata
  6. superclassSarcopterygii
  7. superclassTetrapoda
  8. classMammals · Mammalia
  9. subclassTheria
  10. superorderLaurasiatheria
  11. orderEven-toed hoofed animals · Artiodactyla
  12. suborderWhippomorpha
  13. infraorderWhales & dolphins · Cetacea
  14. familyMonodontidae
  15. genusMonodon
More

More about the Narwhal

Closest relative on this site
🐾 Beluga whale — last shared an ancestor ≈ 2.8 million years ago.
What it eats
fish60%
insects and other invertebrates40%
In other languages
Narwal (nl), חדשן (he), Narwal (de), narwal jednozębny (pl), narval (es), イッカク (ja) … and 26 more languages
More photos
Нарвал у островов Карла-Александра и Джексона (северная часть архипелага Земля Франца-Иосифа), июнь 2019A pod of narwhals (Monodon monoceros) off Greenland.Hellevoetsluis; Historyland; Oeroceaan; slagtand narwal
All 6 photos in the gallery →

Animals caught on camera

Real footage of the animals on this site — hunting, fighting, and getting on with it.

See all 7 videos →
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Tools

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Scaling lab

Does it punch above its weight? Its stats against what body size predicts.

3.42× predictedOpen →
Tree of life

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15 branchesOpen →