The Arctic Waters of the Narwhal

        Narwhal's live in the Arctic Ocean. The main areas they live are the norther shores of Canada, Russia, and Greenland. Narwhals are usually found not far from loose ice packs. In the winter they prefer deep water, but in the summer they migrate to shallower waters. As you can probably guess, their habitat is quite wet (Oh the jokes...). It is also cold year round in the Arctic waters. If you were to go to the Arctic waters, you may want to go on a boat, because being in the water could cause you to die of hypothermia, but that's just a suggestion.

        The flora and fauna of the Arctic waters are quite unique. Some animals, animals that the narwhal actually eats, are squid and krill. Some flora of the arctic (not necessarily in the water) are polar poppies and willow shrubs. The squid and krill provide food for the narwhal, where the polar poppies and willow shrubs don't do much for them.

        One problem in the Arctic, is it's use for oil. When there are companies digging for oil, it can cause oil spills, which majorly disrupts the animal's habitats. One solution to this issue would to just not drill for oil in those areas. Another environmental problem is global warming. The Arctic experiences the effects of climate change worse than anywhere else in the world, with temperatures warming nearly twice as fast. A solution for this would be to emit less carbon dioxide into the air. The carbon dioxide damages the ozone layer, which keeps the temperatures down.

        A narwhal's niche is to eat squid and krill, and to be hunted by orca whales. The ecosystem supports the narwhal by making an abundance of krill and squid for them to eat, which keeps them growing. Then they feed the orca whales and help maximize their population.

Food Chain

Phytoplankton (Producer)

Krill (Primary Consumer)

Narwhal (Secondary Consumer)

Orca Whales (Tertiary Consumer)

        One animal that could compete with the narwhal, is the killer whale. The narwhal and the killer whale could fight over the same foods. The chance of a narwhal going to areas where killer whales are is slim, but possible. They would compete in the same niche of eating the squid and krill.

References:

Ocean Conservancy Team. "The Arctic." Ocean Conservancy: Arctic: Protecting the Pristine Arctic. N.p., n.d. Web. Oct. 2015.

Drury, Chad. "Monodon Monoceros (Narwhal)." Animal Diversity Web. N.p., n.d. Web. Oct. 2015.