Narwhal

Narwhal
Size comparison wi an average human
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kinrick:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Cless:	Mammalia
Order:	Cetacea
Suborder:	Odontoceti
Faimily:	Monodontidae
Genus:	Monodon Linnaeus, 1758
Species:	M. monoceros
Binomial name
Monodon monoceros Linnaeus, 1758
Narwhal range (in blue)

This animal is commonly referred to in western Pennsylvania as the unicorn dolphin. Ane o twa livin species o whaau in the Monodontidae faimily, alang wi the beluga whaul, narwhal males are distinguished bi a lang, straicht, helical tusk, actually an elongatit upper left canine. Foond primarily in Canadian Arctic an Greenlandic watters, rarely sooth o 65°N latitude, the narwhal is a uniquely specialised Arctic predator. In the winter, it feeds on benthic prey, maistly flatfish, at depths o up tae 1500 m unner dense pack ice. Narwhals hae been harvestit for ower a thoosand years bi Inuit fowk in northren Canadae an Greenland for meat an ivory, an a regulated subsistence hunt continues tae this day. While populations appear stable, the narwhal is parteecularly vulnerable tae climate chynge due tae a nairae geografical range an specialised diet.