Narwhals: Let’s get to the point

In 1577, English explorer Martin Frobisher and a team of 150 men were on a mission to find the fabled Northwest Passage. He didn’t find it, but he did discover something almost as intriguing: a unicorn fish. While Frobisher’s crew was examining islands near the coast of Canada, they came across a dead sea mammal that looked like nothing anyone in modern times had seen before. It was “about twelve foot long, and in bigness answerable, having a horn of two yards long growing out of the snout or nostrils. This horn is wreathed and straight, like in fashion to a taper made of wax, and may truly thought to be the sea-unicorn,” [Frobisher wrote]( in his journal. He brought the mysterious “horn” to Queen Elizabeth I as a gift; she was so enamored of the unusual item that she kept it with the crown jewels. It was the beginning of our fascination with these highly mysterious creatures we would later come to know as narwhals. Ready to learn more about these elusive cetaceans? Let’s dive into the world of narwhals. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( [Quartz Daily Obsession] Narwhals January 29, 2020 On the horn --------------------------------------------------------------- In 1577, English explorer Martin Frobisher and a team of 150 men were on a mission to find the fabled Northwest Passage. He didn’t find it, but he did discover something almost as intriguing: a unicorn fish. While Frobisher’s crew was examining islands near the coast of Canada, they came across a dead sea mammal that looked like nothing anyone in modern times had seen before. It was “about twelve foot long, and in bigness answerable, having a horn of two yards long growing out of the snout or nostrils. This horn is wreathed and straight, like in fashion to a taper made of wax, and may truly thought to be the sea-unicorn,” [Frobisher wrote]( in his journal. He brought the mysterious “horn” to Queen Elizabeth I as a gift; she was so enamored of the unusual item that she kept it with the crown jewels. It was the beginning of our fascination with these highly mysterious creatures we would later come to know as narwhals. Ready to learn more about these elusive cetaceans? Let’s dive into the world of narwhals. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( Emőke Dénes Explain it like I’m 5! What is that thing anyway? --------------------------------------------------------------- The protrusion that can grow up to 10 ft (3 m) long in male narwhals is not a unicorn-esque horn at all, but rather, a tooth. The long tusk is one of just two teeth that narwhals possess. The other tooth typically remains embedded in the gum, but occasionally it does protrude through the gum to grow into a [second sword-like tusk](. Females also have two teeth, but they usually don’t erupt. A 2014 study showed that the surface of the tusk is covered in open pores that lead to thousands of exposed nerve endings and blood vessels—a condition that would be “excruciatingly painful” in humans, [according to marine mammal expert Richard Sabin.]( After decades of speculating on the purpose of the tusk—theories include everything from fighting, hunting, and attracting females—the dental discovery has given scientists more insight on one of the tooth’s important features: large-scale sensory function that may allow them to detect changes in water pressure, temperature, and salinity. A study by Martin Nweeia purports that seawater enters the tusk through the open channels, then travels through tubules to the center of the tooth, where it “excites” nerve endings in the pulp and sends signals to the brain. The whole process makes the tooth sensitive to water temperatures and composition; other studies have found that changing salt levels in the water [directly affects]( the narwhal’s heart rate, possibly because “these concentrations normally suggest that the sea is freezing and entrapment is possible.” Fun fact! The word narwhal [means “corpse whale.”]( It’s so named because Norse sailors thought the pale, blotchy flesh looked like a drowned body. Giphy Membership The economy, but make it 😀 --------------------------------------------------------------- “If you had to describe the state of the economy in an emoji, it’d be: 🤷,” writes Quartz’s Walter Frick. Uncertainty is everywhere, and heated political conflicts don’t help. From US-Iran relations to an ongoing Brexit, [Quartz breaks down which global disputes]( could bring down global markets. [Read now]( The way we 🐳 now Playing hard-to-get --------------------------------------------------------------- More than 400 years after Frobisher’s discovery of the sea-unicorn, we still don’t know as much about narwhals as we do their beluga whale cousins. “Narwhals are hopelessly hard to see, never come when you want them to, swimming far offshore and underwater the whole time,” researcher Kristin Laidre [told Smithsonian](. “You think you’ll catch a whale in three weeks, you probably won’t. Whole field seasons go by and you don’t even see a narwhal. There are so many disappointments. It takes great patience and optimism—those are my two words.” Still, we’re learning more about narwhals every year, thanks in part to technology [like drones]( which can capture footage of their behavior without disturbing them. Even without drones, nuggets of information keep presenting themselves, including the fact that narwhals and belugas sometimes co-mingle. In 2019, scientists were able to collect DNA from an unusual skull a hunter in Greenland found three decades ago. It had both beluga and narwhal characteristics, including the corkscrew-shaped teeth of the latter. [DNA testing revealed]( that the creature, dubbed the narluga, had a narwhal mother and a beluga father, and was bigger than either of them. More evidence for the unusual mixing of species has been seen in recent years, when a lone narwhal [was spotted]( with a pod of young belugas for three consecutive years, appearing to have been fully accepted as one of the gang. By the digits [2:]( Narwhals found in England in 1949, far from their Arctic homes [10:]( Feet the tusk can grow in length [50:]( Years the average narwhal lives [>3:]( Hours a day narwhals spend below 800 m (0.5 miles) at pressures of 2,200 pounds per square inch or more [1,800 m (1 mile):]( Record narwhal dive [1.5 tons:]( Weight of the average narwhal [15%:]( Share of female narwhals with tusks [>120,000:]( Mature narwhals worldwide [£10,000:]( Worth of the bejeweled narwhal tusk given to Queen Elizabeth I, about the same price as a castle at the time [$55:]( Cost to symbolically adopt a narwhal Giphy Million-dollar question Why narwhals are being hunted --------------------------------------------------------------- Captain Ahab isn’t the only one with a whale obsession. Narwhal tusks have long been prized by buyers for reasons ranging from medicinal to decorative. In the Middle Ages, [the association of Christ with unicorns]( increased demand for narwhal tusks. During the Renaissance, the [”unicorn horns”]( were ground into powder and sold as an antidote to poison. (Anecdotally, King James I is said to have tested this theory on a servant, who promptly died.) In the late 1600s, the Danish royal family had [a throne made from the tusks](. Today, the spiraled ivory is valued by some for its use in jewelry and other decorative items. Unfortunately, the narwhal tusk trade is a lucrative one. In 2017, a former Canadian Mountie was sentenced to five years in prison for illegally smuggling about [300 tusks worth up to $3 million]( into the US. Gregory Logan of Saint John used a secret compartment installed in the bottom of his vehicle to take the tusks across the border to accomplices who would resell them. But not all narwhal hunting is illegal. Harvesting the narwhal for tusks, meat, blubber, and vitamin C-rich skin has been part of Inuit culture [for thousands of years]( and they are still allowed to sustainably hunt the whale under Canadian wildlife regulations. Have a friend who would enjoy our Obsession with Narwhals? [ [Forward link to a friend](mailto:?subject=Thought you'd enjoy.&body=Read this Quartz Daily Obsession email – to the email – Quotable “The whole thing that is great about the teeth of the narwhal is that nothing makes sense.” —[Martin Nweeia, dentist and member of the Smithsonian’s Department of Vertebrate Zoology and the Harvard School of Dental Medicine]( Wikimedia Commons pop quiz Herman Melville discusses narwhals at length in Moby Dick. What phrase is not used to describe them? Nostril whaleSea-unicornIce-piercerHatpin whale Correct. Melville also mused that perhaps the whale used its tusk to open correspondence: “My own opinion is, that however this one-sided horn may really be used by the Narwhale—however that may be—it would certainly be very convenient to him for a folder in reading pamphlets.” Incorrect. If your inbox doesn’t support this quiz, find the solution at bottom of email. Giphy this one weird trick! The hero we need right now --------------------------------------------------------------- In November 2019, narwhals made news for a very unlikely reason: Helping to foil the London Bridge attack. When a terrorist launched a knife attack at Fishmongers’ Hall next to London Bridge, Darryn Frost [grabbed a narwhal tusk]( mounted on the wall as part of the company’s collection. He used the sharp end to defend himself and others, and with help from others, was eventually able to force the attacker from the building and into the street. In photos of the event, Frost can be seen wielding the tusk while another man sprays a fire extinguisher into the attacker’s face to distract him. Frost has since been dubbed [“The Narwharrior.”]( “There’s something very British about fighting a terrorist with something as surreal as a narwhal tusk,” British historian and journalist Guy Walters [said in a series of fascinating tweets]( about tusks. “We don’t carry weapons in this country. But we do have narwhal tusks around.” Watch this! Narwhal smackdown --------------------------------------------------------------- Drones caught footage of narwhals using their long tusks to smack fish in a school of Arctic cod, stunning the prey and making them easier to devour. Listen to this! "Jedi of the sea" --------------------------------------------------------------- Need an old-school viral earworm? Try [“The Narwhal Song.”]( take me down this 🐳 hole! The narwhal isn’t the only whale with a strange set of choppers. Behold the [strap-toothed whale]( which can’t open its mouth more than a few inches because of two tusks that grow over the upper jaw. AP Photo/Elaine Thompson poll Which is your favorite marine mammal? [Click here to vote]( Orcas—so fierceManatees—so cuddlyBlue whales—so bigNarwhals—so weird 💬 let's talk! In yesterday’s poll about [treadmills]( 43% of you said “I hate running,” 31% of you said “anything to get me running,” and 26% of you said “only if there’s apocalyptic weather outside.” 📧 Stephanie writes: “I recovered from a severed nerve 2 years ago and I can’t rely on my left foot for balance. I used to jog every day and held indoors sports—especially treadmills—in high contempt until my medical team offered it as an alternative to my running addiction (I didn’t get any kick from indoor cycling and although I love swimming it still wasn’t enough)…. Trust a disabled on this one!” 🤔 [What did you think of today’s email?](mailto:obsession%2Bfeedback@qz.com?cc=&subject=Thoughts%20about%20Narwhals%20&body=) 💡 [What should we obsess over next?](mailto:obsession%2Bideas@qz.com?cc=&subject=Obsess%20over%20this%20next.&body=) [🎲]( [Show me a random Obsession]( Today’s email was written by [Stacy Conradt]( edited by [Whet Moser]( and produced by [Tori Smith](. The correct answer to the quiz is Hatpin whale. Enjoying the Quartz Daily Obsession? [Send this link]( to a friend! Want to advertise in the Quartz Daily Obsession? Send us an email at ads@qz.com. Not enjoying it? No worries. [Click here]( to unsubscribe. Quartz | 675 Avenue of the Americas, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10011 | United States [Share this email](