Narwhals Explained: The REAL Unicorns of the Sea!

Added: 2026-05-09

[00:00:05]Ugh.

[00:00:06]This thing won't start. Try unplugging it and plugging it [music] back in. It's not a computer. Try tapping the 54 on the side of the bottle. That's for ketchup. Did you try uh blowing into it?

[00:00:17]That's for a Nintendo. Oh, I know. Ask it nicely. Andy, that's ridiculous.

[00:00:22]Asking a spaceship to work will not work.

[00:00:26]Hey, Mr. Spaceship. Please, oh please, start so we can get out of here. I'm freezing. No problem, guy.

[00:00:34]See? A little kindness goes a long way.

[00:00:36]Yeah, okay, whatever. Let's just get out of here.

[00:00:42]Oh, no. What happened now? It seems like we're stuck. Stuck on what?

[00:00:51]According to my calculations, it says it's a mammal, but with a horn.

[00:00:58]It's a unicorn.

[00:01:00]Steve, you scared the bejeebers out of me. I'm sorry. It's just I'm allergic to all variations of corn. Creamed corn, candy corn, unicorns, you name it. If they get too close to me, I swell up like a balloon. Don't you mean balloon?

[00:01:15]>> Whatever. Relax, guys. Unicorns are not real. Says you. My aunt had a unicorn and every Sunday we used to feed it cabbage and it would rip farts that sounded like >> [screaming] >> 4 hours later.

[00:01:41]6 days later.

[00:01:48]Enough. Roberta, can you please tell me any mammal that has a horn that we could be stuck on? Well, it doesn't have a horn, per se. There is one creature who has something like it, the narwhal.

[00:02:00]They're sometimes called the unicorns of the sea.

[00:02:08]Narwhals are a type of whale. There are many different types of whale species that exist, but narwhals stand out amongst them due to their unique tusks.

[00:02:17]In fact, they're the only modern whales that have tusks today. Narwhals can reach lengths up to nearly 20 ft, with males being longer than females. They can also weigh nearly 4,200 lbs. That's as heavy as three cows. They also have blubber that can be 4 in thick or more to keep them warm in the Arctic waters. Narwhals live in the cold, icy waters of the Arctic Ocean in and around [music] Canada, Greenland, and Russia.

[00:02:46]Narwhals also migrate or move from one place to another seasonally to follow food and keep themselves safe. Narwhals are not fast swimmers >> [music] >> and typically move through the water at about 4 mph, but narwhals are excellent divers, diving deep into the ocean at depths up to 5,900 ft. That's almost as big as four Empire State Buildings and they're known to be able to hold their breath for up to 30 minutes. Narwhals eat a variety of sea creatures that live in the Arctic Ocean, including squid, shrimp, and fish like cod or halibut, but few things eat narwhals. They are known to be hunted by orcas, aka killer whales, and even polar bears, but there have also been Greenland sharks with narwhal remains found in their [music] stomachs. And interestingly, another known predator for the narwhal is humans, as indigenous peoples of the Arctic have hunted narwhals for years and used their skin, meat, and blubber for food. But in the wild, narwhals typically live anywhere from 25 to 50 years, but there are some that suggest they can live to be up to 100 years old.

[00:04:01]>> [music] >> Is he okay? Who, Steve? He's fine. He's probably just like molting like a spider. It's just like swelling, that's all. A little. He looks like a Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon of Steve Buscemi.

[00:04:15]That's oddly specific, but whatever. We have bigger fish or whales to fry. We're still stuck. Roberta, can't we just break that tusk off and get out of here?

[00:04:26]Not exactly. That tusk is part of what makes narwhals special. Narwhals are most known for their tusk, which can be up to nearly 10 ft long. That's as big as one and a half Michael Jordans. The tusk is actually a tooth. Male narwhals tend to have a tusk [music] and females usually don't, but sometimes females can have a small tusk and males can have no tusk at all. There are even some narwhals with two [music] tusks.

[00:04:54]Tusks also vary in shape, with some being straight, others that are more spiral-like, and some that are thin and delicate, and there are others that have short, thick tusks. This tusk is made of ivory, just like an elephant's tusk and teeth. Narwhals actually have two front teeth, but in most males, the left one grows way longer than the other. The tooth starts inside the mouth, just like [music] your teeth do, but as the tusk grows, it pushes forward through the narwhal's lip and sticks straight out.

[00:05:24]Although it may look like a sword, narwhals use their giant tusks [music] to sense things in the water, such as temperature, pressure, and saltiness.

[00:05:32]The tusk is also important for social behavior, as they sometimes rub their tusks together, which may help them communicate.

[00:05:41]Like my nose. Aside from their tusks, narwhals don't have regular teeth inside of their mouths. Instead, they only have those two front teeth. Due to their lack of chewing teeth, narwhals don't bite or grind down their food. Instead, they swallow their meals whole.

[00:05:57]They use suction to pull food in, then swallow without chewing. Now, all animals are given a status to know if they're doing well [music] and how many there are, and narwhals are categorized as near threatened, meaning they're at risk of becoming endangered. It's believed that changes in the climate, shrinking sea ice, and human activities like shipping and hunting could affect their populations in the future.

[00:06:26]Are you sure he's okay? He looks like he's going to explode.

[00:06:29]>> Ow, chill, man. He probably just had too much Chinese food. A high-sodium diet can do [music] that, you know. I don't know. I think it's a little more serious than that. And he's getting bigger. Or maybe he's like a hermit crab and he got too big for his shell and he's >> But he doesn't have a shell.

[00:06:46]>> Or maybe he's like a snake and he's shedding his skin and Duck.

[00:06:52]Wait, ducks don't have Oh.

[00:07:00]Uh, I think whatever we were stuck on just left.

[00:07:05]>> Steve really was allergic to it after all.

[00:07:09]I guess narwhals really are unicorns of the sea. But wait, Steve. He's gone.

[00:07:15]Gosh, I got so wrapped up in this narwhal thing, I didn't even notice. How about we bow our heads and have a moment of silence for our fallen friend?

[00:07:24][music] Should I say a few words? Definitely.

[00:07:28]Our dearly departed Steve, we'll miss your constant talks of your cousin Fernando.

[00:07:34]>> [music] >> And list of allergies. And mentions of fruit baskets. And your aunt's Plymouth.

[00:07:41]To our friend Steve, gone, but not forgotten.

[00:07:45]Yeah, WE'LL MISS YOU, STEVE.

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