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narwhal
nar·whal also nar·wal N0020800 (när′wəl) or nar·whale (-wāl′, -hwāl′)n. An Arctic whale (Monodon monoceros) having mottled gray or whitish skin and in the male, a long spirally twisted tusk projecting forward from the left side of the head.
[Norwegian or Danish narhval, from Old Norse nāhvalr : nār, corpse (from its whitish color) + hvalr, whale.]narwhal (ˈnɑːwəl) or narwal; narwhale (ˈnɑːˌweɪl) n (Animals) an arctic toothed whale, Monodon monoceros, having a black-spotted whitish skin and, in the male, a long spiral tusk: family Monodontidae[C17: of Scandinavian origin; compare Danish, Norwegian narhval, from Old Norse nāhvalr, from nār corpse + hvalr whale, from its white colour, supposed to resemble a human corpse]nar•whal or nar•wal (ˈnɑr wəl) also nar•whale (-ˌʰweɪl, -ˌweɪl)
n. a small arctic whale, Monodon monoceros, the male of which has a long, spirally twisted tusk extending forward from the upper jaw. [1650–60; < Scandinavian; compare Norwegian, Swedish, Dan nar(h)val, reshaped from Old Norse nāhvalr=nār corpse + hvalr whale1] nar•whal′i•an (-ˈʰweɪ li ən, -ˈweɪ-, -ˈwɒl i-) adj. Thesaurus| Noun | 1. |  narwhal - small Arctic whale the male having a long spiral ivory tuskMonodon monoceros, narwal, narwhalewhale - any of the larger cetacean mammals having a streamlined body and breathing through a blowhole on the headgenus Monodon, Monodon - type genus of the Monodontidae |
Translationsnarwhal
narwhal (när`wəl), a small arctic whalewhale,
aquatic mammal of the order Cetacea, found in all oceans of the world. Members of this order vary greatly in size and include the largest animals that have ever lived. Cetaceans never leave the water, even to give birth.
..... Click the link for more information. , Monodon monoceros. The males of the species, and an occasional female, bear a single, tightly spiraled tusk that measures up to 9 ft (2.7 m) in length. The tusk is an overgrown upper canine tooth, generally the one on the left, that emerges through the upper lip. Very rarely do both canines grow out in this manner; the narwhal is otherwise toothless. Although the functions of the tusk are unclear, it lacks enamel and is nerve-rich, and can sense changes in the environment. Males also appear to use it in sparing with other males. The narwhal is short-headed and virtually snoutless. When mature, it is mottled gray in color. Like its close relative the belugabeluga
or white whale,
small, toothed northern whale, Delphinapterus leucas. The beluga may reach a length of 19 ft (5.8 m) and a weight of 4,400 lb (2,000 kg).
..... Click the link for more information. , it lacks a dorsal fin, but it does have a long, low dorsal hump. The narwhal may reach a length of 20 ft (6.1 m), excluding the tusk. It is found in the Arctic and N Atlantic oceans, occasionally as far south as Britain; narwhals usually travel in groups of 15 to 20 animals. The diet of narwhals consists chiefly of cuttlefish and cod. Mating occurs in the summer, and after a gestation of 14 months the female gives birth to a single blue-gray calf measuring up to 5 ft (1.5 m). The calves are weaned at six months. Formerly killed for its tusk, which was believed to have magical properties (and was sold for centuries as a unicorn horn), the narwhal is now hunted by native peoples for food and for the tusk. The narwhal is classified in the phylum ChordataChordata
, phylum of animals having a notochord, or dorsal stiffening rod, as the chief internal skeletal support at some stage of their development. Most chordates are vertebrates (animals with backbones), but the phylum also includes some small marine invertebrate animals.
..... Click the link for more information. , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Cetacea, family Monodontidae. Bibliography See studies by F. Bruemmer (1993), J. Rosing (1999), and T. McLeish (2013). Narwhal (Monodon monoceros), a mammal of the subfamily Delphinapterinae of the family Delphinidae. The female is up to 5 m long, and the male up to 6 m long. Males may weigh as much as one ton. The newborn calf is about 1.5 m long. The narwhal has a rounded head and lacks a dorsal fin. The adults are light yellow with black spots; the newborns are black. The narwhal has only two upper teeth. The left tooth develops into a twisted tusk up to 3 m in length, the right tooth usually remains undeveloped. The narwhal is a rare species, found in arctic waters, primarily around Greenland and the northern part of the Canadian archipelago. Narwhals live among the ice and feed on cephalopods and fish. REFERENCETomilin, A. G. Kitoobraznye. Moscow, 1957. (Zveri SSSR i prilezhash-chikh strati, vol. 9.) [17 -732–2]narwhal[′när‚wäl] (vertebrate zoology) Monodon monoceros. An arctic whale characterized by lack of a dorsal fin, and by possession in the male of a long, twisted, pointed tusk (or rarely, two tusks) which is a source of ivory. narwhal, narwal, narwhale an arctic toothed whale, Monodon monoceros, having a black-spotted whitish skin and, in the male, a long spiral tusk: family Monodontidae narwhal
Synonyms for narwhalnoun small Arctic whale the male having a long spiral ivory tuskSynonyms- Monodon monoceros
- narwal
- narwhale
Related Words- whale
- genus Monodon
- Monodon
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