The Insane Biology of: The Narwhal
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
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Credits:
Narrator: Stephanie Sammann
Writer: Lorraine Boissoneault
Editor: Dylan Hennessy (www.behance.ne...)
Illustrator: Jacek Ambrożewski
Illustrator/Animator: Kirtan Patel (kpatart.com/il...)
Animator: Mike Ridolfi (www.moboxgraph...)
Sound: Graham Haerther (haerther.net)
Thumbnail: Simon Buckmaster ( / forgottentowel )
REFERENCES
[1] link.springer....
[2] www.nature.com...
[3] psc.apl.uw.edu...
[4] www.cell.com/c...
[5] staff.washingto...
[6] anatomypubs.on...
[7] animalbiotelem...
[8] esajournals.on...
[9] • The first-ever footage...
[10] royalsocietypu...
[11] zslpublication...
[12] onlinelibrary....
[13] polarresearch....
[14] www.cell.com/c...
Dang, corpse whale is a pretty metal name
Nár (pronounced like "nowr") is the Corpse. The Hval (pronounced like "kval") is Danish (also other Scandinavian languages), while the Dutch gave us the "w" part, changing the Hval to whal.
Gojira × Behemoth
It's a Gojira song, I think!
Mark ùa is pretty hardcore metal too!! I've been pondering a name for my new Jeep for months and I think Narluga is it!!! 🤣😎
-- Anyone who is ugly on the inside, I shall refer to them as a...Narwhal.
Ah... now I know why narwhal's are so shy... not very good at breaking the ice.
😂
Def comment of the day. Very nice
Being an apparent over sensitive tooth, I wonder if researchers have tested for electrical sensitivity? Having a “walking cane for the blind “ when in deep darkness on limited air that could pick up the subtle electric pulses of fish and squid would definitely be useful.
Do you think maybe it's some kind of sensor for them to find sexy times with other loving fish?
Narwhals look so magical to me. I heard this from another show that they are also very nervous around people so that's why we cannot learn much about them this and their environment makes it more difficult to study them enough.
You’d be nervous around a species that hunts you too.
Their closest relative, the Beluga whale, is social though.
@@LeonardTavastit's a defensive mechanic. I become talkative when I'm nervous also lol
They're magical because whenever they're mentioned, somebody mentions Donald Trump.
@@LeonardTavast maybe they haven't been hunted as much since they don't have the horn
“Narwhals, narwhals swimming in the ocean causing a commotion”
"'cause they are so awesome!"
This has been stuck in my head for like 2 months 😵💫
@@windhelmguard5295 Narwhals, narwhals, pretty big and pretty white, they'd beat a polar bear in a fight (except not really, according to this video)
AHH weebl's legacy still lives on after all this time, excellent!
Under water unicorn 😂
Every time I see narwhals, I wonder if they really exist. Even though I heard about them from many documentaries, they still feel out of this world. They’re amazing creatures.
This is the absolute best video I've seen on Narwhals. I've watched so many over 40yrs. I learned more from this than any. You make absolutely fantastic videos. Science teachers in elementary & middle schools could add them to their lesson plans to make a huge difference in students grades.
These videos are so informative, genuinely great quality content.
Yes, with the exception of Dune worms.
This one was particularly interesting to me. Great content. Narwhals are indeed more extreme than I had known. Far more.
@@infinitemonkey917 Yeah I skipped that one bro
that narwhal sitting there just saying fuck was hilarious
I’ve genuinely learned more info on narwhals in this one video than in my entire life and narwhals are one of my favorite animals.
This just exposes you as extremely lazy
An informative and entertaining video on Narwhals. Thank you Stephanie. I look forward to your next one.
National Geographic or Discovery need to contact you to narrate all of their programs!! You're voice is so soothing!! Great video as always!!
great vid as allways
Two points I have to make
1. I love that the videos are not only interesting but they keep getting funnier
2. thanks for letting us put a face to the voice
so ... just keep doing what you are doing
Narwhals: Have long tusks on their heads.
Scientists: *Why are you like this? WHY???*
Scientists are the biggest Karens
0:46
That fart sound effect is PRICELESS 😅
I wasn't ready😭
It was me; that was my fart
Followed by "Maybe you're thinking, that's still a majestic creature..."
🤣
Unexpected moment 😂😂😂
0:44 * 🙄🙄🙄🙄
Those tusks are also sensitive to pressure changes.
This means they may also be capable of sensing and tracking sources of sound/vibration in even the darkest waters. Like those of prey.
the ai narwhals was an assault to my senses
That sound effect 0:41 was uncalled for, lmao
LMFAO I’m dying of laughter in bed thanks to you
I love narwhals, pretty big and pretty white. They're like an underwater unicorn that got a kick-ass facial horn. They do cause a commotion swimming in the sea, but that's just because they're so awesome.
It still blows my mind that they're the inventor of Shish Kebab.
One could make the argument that they're akin to the Jedi from Star Wars, except that they're in the sea.
I'm pretty sure that, should they fight a polar bear, they'd emerge victorious!
Tjis entire chain is such a great reference.
"maybe you would think that until you learn that that spiraling horn is... but any other animal with a single 3 m long tooth would be immediately cancelled." I think of Elephants immediately, even though they typically have two long teeth. I'm just curious if that model shouldn't be challenged.
Das diese wunderschönen Geschöpfe noch nicht ausgerottet wurden, wegen ihrem Zahn, grenzt an ein Wunder!
Stimmt
Obviously, the tusk is for cleaning the gunk out of each other's mouths and/or chipping away at ice. A toothpick, if you will.
They can't chip away at ice with their "tusk" which isn't actually a tusk..but an elongated tooth, even more sensitive than our teeth. So, google exists..maybe actually watch the video or do your own research, before saying Obviously..as if its actually an obvious given..when it's not and you're actually way wrong. See, 14 other idiots blindly read and liked your comment, taking it as fact and sensible. When In actuality you dont know a Narwhals tusk from your own asshole.
Very comfortable speaker and seems comfortable talking. Most people look uncomfortable or forced when do documentary type videos. Keep up the good work.
This is my first impression of her first time I watched their documentary years ago. Sounds very passionate on the topic as well
The real name is
"Toothpick nosed pickle dolphin".
Why pickle?
@@Bixnoodlethe shape
I'm glad your continuing to make these amazing videos. The quality is great and so informative. Keep up the great work! :)
you're*
@@DirtyBobBojangles Shut up please
Small thing, but dentinal tubules are only on the root surfaces of teeth in humans. Roots do not have any enamel on them. They do have a thin layer of cementum but usually that layer is worn away, leaving the tubules exposed. That's why people with gum recession get sensitive teeth
late on watching this episode...would like to see you cover the pitbull fishing bat...like echo location is complex enough but fishing with echo location is an absolute fascination
When you mentioned that narwhals are at risk of Entrapment, I thought you were about to say that their most feared predator is Catherine Zeta Jones.
I was first made aware of the Narwhal spike/horn when someone used it to defend themselves during an attack on a bridge in London.
Ever since I saw them for the first time in national geographic, they're like my favorite sea creature. It's the mystical appearance that they give off and the stark difference that it has from other sea mammals.
Shout-out to my one highschool teacher that argued with me that narwhal's weren't real. I always knew teachers could be dumb, but that cemented it from theory to fact. 😅
I had a teacher that argued with me claiming Alabama and Mississippi was New England.
I had a teacher who spun round with a bucket quarter filled with water and tried to claim that was gravity. I was five years old and he was my headmaster and when I told him no that’s actually centrifugal force I wound up in detention for the rest of the week every lunch break. My father went up to the school and put a book in front of him with the demonstration and below it demonstration for centrifugal force believe it was the Oxford and Cambridge science Encyclopedia. Or something similar and suggested contacting the school board to let them know that there had been an error…………. he told my father that it wasn’t important what it said in other books only what the school curriculum said and they wouldn’t possibly make a mistake!
He did, however relent on keeping me in for another three lunch breaks !
They’re all ego over the certificate. Many of them have no ability to be able to use logic or reason or think for themselves they were just the best at repeating stuff and nation of “workers not thinkers” Rockefeller
I had a college history teacher argue with me about the Battle of the Bulge, she insisted that it took place in WWI. 🤦🏼♂️ Needless to say, because I had the temerity to argue with her in front of the class, she failed me that semester.
You forgot one of the main uses of the different claws on crustaceans. Most have one crusher claw that has far more muscle in it that is used to break shells and whatnot. The other is primarily a holding claw.
nah
True but in some crabs one claw is so much bigger than the other to the point where it isn't useful at all, as in fiddler crabs which don't break shells at all with their larger claw, as they eat random detritus they pick off of the sand anyway
I find it weird that tusks mostly form from one tooth, that lack of symmetry...
I can never unlearn the fact that a bunch of science hippies made narwhal tusk condoms to test the “salinity sensor” hypothesis.
Great videos always. Thanks and keep them coming.
As a computer science major, I never thought I'd fall in love with biology, yet here I am, binge-watching all of your videos.
I have buck teeth... Next time s.one makes fun of me, I'll proudly declare myself as the dream boyfriend for a unicorn
In my humble opinion, a Narwhal *is* a unicorn. A sea unicorn to be exact.
It shoots laser lights that we feline enthusiastically chase
This video was awesome! If I may provide a suggestion, I think making a biology video on the African Lungfish would be so cool! Theyre so interesting with how they can bury themselves in the ground for months basically becoming a husk when there is no water and then come back as if nothing happened when the water returns.
Narwhals, narwhals! Swimming in the ocean! Causing a commotion!
Nice to see who's been blowing my mind for all this time. Great video once again.
Is this the first time face reveal? Took me by surprise
Narwhals. Narwhals swimming in the ocean causing commotion swimming away cause they are so awesome. This song was like my toddler anthem 🙂
I just wanna say I really love the work you guys do with your videos and the amount of effort you put in to making them look and sound as premium as they do for a TH-cam video. I also love how scientifically informative they are when explained, however this video is probably the first I’ve seen that looks like click bait for people who don’t really care about science. It makes the video feel cheap tbh and less appealing. I watch your videos to get away from crappy content. Please don’t change for good!
We need a dedicated video on Chickens
Yeah, that would be good. Also, the many different ways of cooking them, too!
Realest thing ever
Narwhals appear incredibly enchanting to me. I've been told in another program that they are quite skittish around humans, which is why our understanding of them is limited. This, combined with their habitat, makes studying them a challenge.
Well, I'd be "timid" too if I was being hunted out of existence. Wouldn't you? Many animals have LEARNED to be timid or have instinctually always been timid of humans and rightly so. Humans may be "self aware" yet seems we haven't gotten any smarter. Good luck to us, right?
thank you so much!! marine mammals are my absolute favs and this video is so well made and informative!! ahh i almost cried because i love your vids sm!
"The answer may be revealed in time" 15:10 It is unlikely that they will not driven extinct before we get the answer.
Amazing video! Actually informative and well-researched
This presenter is gifted, and always a good narrator.
Corpse Whales with giant toothy horns ARE Majestic AF. Mother Nature's design is not bound to your standards.
At some point even the most ardent marine biologist has to shrug and say "does it really matter what the giant tooth is for?"
tripe
@Dr.Ian-Plect exactly, at the end of the day, who cares what the tooth is for, even if the narwhal uses it to poke out eyes lol
Great video thank you! Narwhals are fascinating!
I can't imagine how painful it would hurt that tusk if it's like a tooth. I suffered through a lot of different toothache soI know how painful one "little" tooth can be, let alone a meter long tusk full of nerves
It looks as if it would be right at home at a ren fair jousting event
Nice to see the face behind these fascinating videos. I really enjoy the content you create.
It's like the awl on the back of a Swiss Army knife - you find uses for it.
I LOVE when she does creatures I've never heard of! Cool video.
Wow...lol
0:40 LOL the sound got me
The fart noise accompanying the narwhal reveal is wild
I like your TH-cam Channel. You have made me interested in biology.
What on earth sounds like a perfect name for a series
I am a little annoyed you guys are using AI-"Art" in your work
Bad because money could have gone to an actual artist, sure, but if you are annoyed by AI being trained on the works of people without their consent: people have been doing to that to each other for who knows how long.
Plus, the models are sort of made for merging motives and styles, so may as well use them for that here and there. You gotta get over it...
@@XDarkGreyXai art is ugly and annoying. The video would be better without it.
True. Using ai is obnoxious
@@XDarkGreyX I can understand those who say that it's simply ugly and distracting, because I feel that too, but "it steals jobs from artists, meaning that they can't buy food or pay rent" isn't an issue with AI, but an issue with capitalism.
Haven’t noticed. Timecodes?
Well done. These are one of my favorite marine mammals.
Do we know about the early ancestors of narwhals? did they also have weird organs, like the past relatives of present day sharks and elephants?
Good point. I used to believe evolution created our world but looking at the whale evolution story just couldn't cut it. So a 4 legged land dwelling mammal had its nose mutated to the top of its head and then somehow its back legs turned into flippers. Lightbulb! It was designed to flourish in its ecosystem. There is soooo much evidence for design AND you don't need blind faith to accept the big bang story. Once you realise you're not an 'accident' and your heavenly Father loves you, life is purposeful exciting and real. Jesus loves you bro! Messiah 2030
I love these videos, they must take a ton of work. The use of generative ai artwork is a little bit distracting though.
Very informative video, thanks for sharing. This video is now making me learn more about this amazing fish
All whales are actually mammals, not fish.
obviously a Moby Dick fan heheh.
@artawhirler but mammals are technically fish
Narwhals are so majestic and beautiful. They are truly unicorns
"It stops Cthulhu eating ye!"
I love your channel. I saw comments about AI art, I’m not a fan of it myself, but I listen to things while I’m driving, doing house projects, etc. I just stumbled upon it recently, and it’s awesome. I love learning about the natural world. I look forward to listening to more and coming to my own conclusion about the page and the substance it presents! Cheers!
✨Narwhal blast!✨
I love Star! 🌟
The rhythm of the video, te quality of edition and the depth developed about the topic are really outstanding. 👏🏽
Why use an AI-generated image at 7:06? There's plenty of real pictures of entrapments out there. I can understand the one at 1:04, even though a badly photoshopped one would have been funnier
Literally no one on earth cares that this bothers you
@@vancodling4223 you cared enough to reply
Narwhal appreciation day is still more than two weeks away! You must have something big planned for the official day.
7:08 is that an AI image?? It looks freaking weird.
Definitely is, noticed something was off about it and then saw others in the comments noticed too
@@marcdiaz8639 I don't understand why they wouldn't use a real image or get an actual artist to render something. Really disappointing to see the use of AI so normalized, especially by a science education channel I respect so much.
@@KrazyKaiser I’m hoping it was just a mistake, I think they’ve accidentally used AI images in a previous video and addressed it. But it is a shame, especially since I myself am an artist. It’s lazy and honestly unprofessional especially for an educational channel
@@marcdiaz8639”i’M aN aRtIsT mYsElF” shut up about it already. No one cares. Quit begging to be seen as a victim, loser.
@@KrazyKaiser you don't understand why they used a free image that depicted narwhals instead of paying someone to do the exact same thing? That's genuinely a question?
So incredibly grateful for your channel, diligence, and hard work. We all benefit from it, which is the noblest of pursuits. Thank you. 💕🥂
Could you do a video on the Amur Tiger?
Narwhal’s and Beluga’s getting their freak on 😂
Real Engineering: "We're going to appear on camera more often to combat the usage of AI"
Also Real Engineering: uses AI anyway
what a slap in the face
It's always the people who create "art" like your PFP that complain about ai. It's not like AI is replacing someone like Dali, it was used to depict a fucking whale dude. Get over it
5:28 That's why everyone calls them the Masao Kakiharas of Arctic waters. It cannot be just me.
That guessing ridiculous reasons was great, you could repeat it with future videos of yours (when applicable). Great video!
The narwhal bacons at midnight
First time watching your channel. Saw your sponsor for Cell to Singularity. I’ve been playing for a while. I love this game, and they continue adding things to it.
Ever since I found your channel I have loved your content! Keep it up!
These videos are absolutely amazing and really interesting
When I click on the link for the Cell Toi Singularity game (from a Windows PC) I get a Microsoft Defender warning me not to proceed because it is associated with phishing.
My guess with their tusk was that it was used like how a swordfish uses them. And that they were for show like attracting mates. This video was pretty interesting. I had no idea they could sense anything through them, and using them to find open areas to breathe makes sense too.
Maybe it's also like a sensory organ for hunting?
When something moves, that movement ripples out and moves water along the tooth at a different rate than if there had been no movement. That different flow rate might register to them as a change in salinity, similar to how the movement of air from like a fan or something can register as a difference in air temperature to our own skin.
The tooth could be an alternative to echolocation for hunting scarce bottomdwelling prey and cephalopods in very deep, dark water. One that's also much more energy efficient, because the animal doesn't have to produce very loud sounds.
I don't think it would otherwise make sense for additional salinity to the tooth to trigger an elevated heart rate, as that would just mean that the narwhal consumes even more oxygen right when it is about to become much harder for it to breathe. It would also lead the animal to *avoid* breathing holes in the ice, because that's where ice growth is going to be the most intense (cold air meeting liquid water) and thus salinity will be too.
The fact that horned whales exist but horned horses don't reality is stranger than fantasy
Please say no to shitty AI images... even if there's no actual photo documentation, a drawing is much better
Narwhale: “Wouldn’t you like to know.”
TBH, your comparing crabs and mammals, thats a good way to anger evolutionists LOL
TBH I used to believe evolution created our world but looking at the whale evolution story just couldn't cut it. So a 4 legged land dwelling mammal had its nose mutated to the top of its head and then somehow its back legs turned into flippers. Lightbulb! It was designed to flourish in its ecosystem. There is soooo much evidence for design AND you don't need blind faith to accept the big bang story. Once you realise you're not an 'accident' and your heavenly Father loves you, life is purposeful exciting and real. Jesus loves you bro! Messiah 2030
How
how?
I really like your channel. Please keep it about the science, i know you will eventually get sponsors, but please always keep it about the science. Thank you for the knowledge.
I'm not a biologist or anything, but I love animals and read published, peer-reviewed studies on them. One thing I want to add to this debate on Narwal tusks being dominantly masculine is that antlers on deer are as well. A rather large portion of female deer have antlers. This is because sexual characteristics are determined by a large range of factors. This may be the same thing; intersex. Sex, like gender, isn't always "just" male or "just" female. Those who have sexual dimorphism have the possibility of being intersex, and it's a larger number than what I was aware of being looking into it before researching it. Could the males growing two or no tusks and the females growing a single, long tusk be intersex? If the tusks are a sign of sexual dimorphism (like thick, dark facial hair for male humans or antlers for deer), maybe adding experiments including observing sexual characteristics on a boilogical level (hormones, chromosones ect.) could be included.
a female with a tusk does not mean she is "intersex" as the researchers clearly state they are females, it more likely means they are more androgen sensitive and tusk growth requires a certain amount of androgens which the low % of females who have more androgen receptors or are more androgen sensitive, are able to grow.
Wdym? Caribou are the only deer species where the females grow antlers
@@trhtkify I guess it would depend on whether or not the tusk is considered a sexual body part or not? An intersex individual, from what I understand, is one with atypical sexual characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads and genitals (according to the almighty Wikipedia), and from what I gathered from the video, no one has really been able to define the primary purpose of a narwhal's tusk yet.
@@trhtkify Thank you for your comment. It really was just what came to mind, since it is something seen in many animals. As I said, I'm not a biologist or anything. I just was writing out my thoughts. I love science, but don't have formal education in it beyond American high school. I don't recall the video mentioning androgeny specifically, but do recall that it mentioned that it's possible that the entire species may be tusked in the future so maybe I should have connected the dots, lol. I will definately be looking more into Narwhals. If I offended you, I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention to offend anybody.
@@GoofballLOL They are normally. But it's been doccumented that the American White-tailed deer has been known to have female individuals who grow antlers. Hunters have shot deer with antlers, only to realize it was a doe. It's not something that the entire female population grows, it's a genetic abnormality. Just like some humans can display sexual characteristic of the opposite sex (without taking steriods or HRT), other animals can as well. Cockatiels also can display sexual characteristics of the opposite sex. This isn't the "normal", it's that sexual characteristics are controlled by lots of things, and sometimes things don't happen the normal way. You can find case studies on intersex and physical sex - both human and the non-human animal. The best way to find peer-reviewed studies are papers that end in .edu
“Well these claws aren’t just for attracting mates 🦀”
The narwhal panicking with the increasing salinity was cute
You are so fun to listen to. Super informative !
I love that they're asymmetrical
I loved this episode. Thank you. ❤
This channel has enough subscribers that you don’t have to rely on ai for content. It’s not like this was time sensitive either.
Your job is being taken first
What’re you on about?
You really shouldn't drive. Think of the horse and buggy drivers!
@@sirrele_ 😱 so scared
@@ShapeshiftedCow it looks obviously fake and not good
The poor narwhal's "f***" thought bubble at 7:55 is adorable! 😂