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Global Warming Poses Great Risk to Narwhal
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Although polar bears grab more headlines, the narwhal, an arctic mammal with a distinctive tusk, could be more severely affected by climate change.
30-Second Summary
The narwhal is an “arctic whale characterized by a single spiraled tusk extending six to nine feet” that is “often associated with the horn of the unicorn,” according to The Narwhal Tusk Research organization.
The narwhal has been featured in mythical tales, but the threat to its habitat is very real.
In an April 2008 study, the narwhal “edged out the polar bear for the ranking of most potentially vulnerable in a climate change risk analysis of Arctic marine mammals,” reports the Associated Press.
The study focused on 11 arctic mammals, examining “nine different variables that help determine ability to withstand future climate changes,” including “ population size, habitat uniqueness, diet diversity and ability to cope with sea ice changes,” reported the AP.
This is not the first time that attention has been called to the plight of the narwhal.
In April 2007, an “anomaly in climate change” was discovered, said U.K. newspaper The Independent. In Baffin Bay in Northern Canada, ice had frozen over “cracks in the ice and patches of open water” where wintering narwhals would normally have surfaced to breathe.
Ironically, according to Martin T. Nweeia, leader of a team of narwhal researchers, the narwhal “is intent on understanding its environment.”
The narwhal has been featured in mythical tales, but the threat to its habitat is very real.
In an April 2008 study, the narwhal “edged out the polar bear for the ranking of most potentially vulnerable in a climate change risk analysis of Arctic marine mammals,” reports the Associated Press.
The study focused on 11 arctic mammals, examining “nine different variables that help determine ability to withstand future climate changes,” including “ population size, habitat uniqueness, diet diversity and ability to cope with sea ice changes,” reported the AP.
This is not the first time that attention has been called to the plight of the narwhal.
In April 2007, an “anomaly in climate change” was discovered, said U.K. newspaper The Independent. In Baffin Bay in Northern Canada, ice had frozen over “cracks in the ice and patches of open water” where wintering narwhals would normally have surfaced to breathe.
Ironically, according to Martin T. Nweeia, leader of a team of narwhal researchers, the narwhal “is intent on understanding its environment.”
Headline Links: Narwhal in peril
The Associated Press reports that “the polar bear has become an icon of global warming vulnerability,” but a new study published in the journal Ecological Applications finds that another Arctic mammal, the narwhal, faces an even greater risk. The narwhal will not necessarily become extinct first, but the species is more vulnerable to climate change, according to the study.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle (Associated Press)
In April 2007, U.K. newspaper The Independent reported that narwhals, which depend on “the edges of rapidly retreating polar ice,” had become particularly at risk of extinction due to global warming. A study by the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society found that the narwhal population was decreasing by nearly 10 percent each year.
Source: The Independent
Background: The mythical narwhal and its tusk
A 2005 study debunked previous theories of how the narwhal uses its long tusk. “The tusk, it turns out, forms a sensory organ of exceptional size and sensitivity, making the living appendage one of the planet's most remarkable,” reported a New York Times article.
Source: The New York Times (free registration may be required)
According to The Narwhal Tusk Research organization, narwhals can be found in the Atlantic portion of the Arctic Ocean, and in fewer numbers in the Greenland Sea. Narwhal facts, Inuit legends and unicorn myth related to the narwhal, and various tools for narwhal research are also provided.
Source: The Narwhal Tusk Research
Reference: Investigation of climate change risk in the Arctic
The recent study published in the Ecological Society of America journal was the first “rigorous effort to investigate either climate change or environmental responses, including those by humans, at the ecological scale of Arctic marine mammals,” including narwhals.
Source: The Ecological Society of America
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