There is a harsh truth about narwhals that we all must bravely stand and face: without the long, single tusk sticking out of their heads like a sea unicorn, they would just be another whale. Maybe even a whale people confuse for a seal because it looks more like a chubby seal than a whale.
But narwhal tusks aren’t just endearing, they’re mystifying. We’ve never fully understood what it is they do with it, other than look cute to other narwhals—until now.
We knew the tusks were used in mating displays, and that’s about it. But thanks to drone footage captured by researchers from the United States and Canada, we just got a ton of concrete evidence of a bunch of different ways a narwhal uses its glorious tusk. Overall, 17 distinct narwhal behaviors were captured in the footage.
One of the observed behaviors captured by the drone footage is rather creatively referred to as “tusking.” It’s when the narwhals cross their tusks in what researchers say seems like a social or competitive display. Essentially, they’re using their tusks as toy swords as they act out lightsaber duels.
A range of other behaviors can be seen throughout the footage. The tusks play an important role in exploration, foraging, and, of course, in playtime and mating.
One of the most delightful uses researchers observed was the narwhal using their tusks to non-aggressively interact with nearby fish. They use their tusk to tap a nearby fish, flip them over, or knock them around a little bit, maybe push them deeper into the water.
None of it seemed overly aggressive or cruel. From how the researchers describe it, it sounds like an older brother messing with their younger sibling. But, you know, dolphins do similar things and are notorious dicks of the sea, so who knows.
When it came time to observe the narwhals at feeding time, that tusk-based jocularity suddenly turned deadly. The narwhals would use their tusks to attack fish like they were slashing at them with a sword. It didn’t cut them like a sword, since the tusk is a blunt object, but it did stun and even kill some of them.
The tusks helped the narwhals forage for food, but also helped them protect their food from scavenging little sky thieves like seagulls, who would swoop down to try to poach their dinner. And not just seagulls; some would use their tusks as a way of telling other narwhals to back off from their meal.
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