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Narwhals’ tusks are elongated canine teeth

Narwhals’ tusks are elongated canine teeth

Narwhals’ tusks are elongated canine teeth

Usually males grow a spiral tusk up to about three meters — an elongated canine packed with nerve endings, not an ice pick for stabbing floes.

Sensory research suggests the tusk samples salinity and water chemistry, turning a tooth into an environmental probe.

Fantasy horn, real instrument. The unicorn of the Arctic carries a living sensor ahead of its skull.

Shahzad Mahota Shahzad Mahota @shahzad-mahota

Narwhals’ tusks are elongated canine teeth