Monodon is a genus of toothed whales containing a single living species, the narwhal, the other living member of the family Monodontidae alongside the beluga. Narwhals are stocky cetaceans with a blunt snout, a large melon and a shallow ridge in place of a dorsal fin, and males possess a long spiralled tusk, a protruding left canine that can reach 1.5 to 3.0 meters. The genus inhabits Arctic waters of Canada, Greenland and Russia, including the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Hudson Bay and Baffin Bay, and jointed neck vertebrae give it more flexibility than most whales.
Facts
Taxonomic Rank Member Count Band Era First Appeared Classification
Living or Extinct In the Other Atlases
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Sources
1. Wikidata (taxon extant/extinct status)
Wikimedia Foundation / Wikidata contributorsQ18510798, descriptionView the Source 2. Wikipedia: Narwhal
Taxonomic rank (Wikipedia confirms the entity; rank from slug/structure-wave classification)View the Source 3. Catalogue of Life (ChecklistBank): Taxon metrics for Monodon
Catalogue of Life (ChecklistBank)Taxon metrics, speciesExtantCountQuote, Taxon metrics, speciesExtantCount
"speciesExtantCount": 1
4. Paleobiology Database: Taxon record for Monodon
Paleobiology DatabaseTaxon record, first appearance (firstapp_max_ma, early_interval)Quote, Taxon record, first appearance (firstapp_max_ma, early_interval)
"taxon_name": "Monodon" ... "firstapp_max_ma": 7.246 ... "early_interval": "Messinian"
Wikidata: Narwhal
WikidataWikidata Q159426, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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