Narwhals adapt to climate crisis by delaying migration

Studies have discovered that Narwhals are adapting to climate crisis by delaying migration raises hopes that species may be able to survive global heating despite slower genetic evolution due to their long lifespan.
According to various new research, Narwhals have been delaying their seasonal migration because of the impact of the climate crisis, suggesting an ability to adapt to the changing Arctic but increasing the risk that they may become trapped in ice. 
Narwhals are recognized by their long spiralled tusk that has earned them the nickname ‘unicorns of the sea’. They inhabit the Arctic waters of Greenland, Canada and Russia. They are a migratory species that spend summer months in ice-free coastal areas before moving to deeper waters between late September and mid-November.
Researchers from the University of Windsor, in Canada, examined satellite data from 1997 to 2018 from 40 narwhals to explore how they moved around the Canadian Arctic and when they left their summer grounds. They compared this data with local and regional changes in temperature and ice formation.
The findings suggest that narwhals have been delaying their migration by almost 10 days each decade, with a total of 17 days’ delay since 1997. Narwhals are also taking an average of about four extra days in the earliest phase of their migration transit.
Courtney Shuert, the study’s author and a researcher at the University of Windsor says that the patterns in the narwhals’ delayed departure match the sea ice trends in the area. Also, scholars mention other research shows that the ocean surrounding the Canadian archipelago froze over approximately five days later a decade.
“There’s this general trend towards delaying migration, but there’s also a lot of inter-annual flexibility, which highlights that they’re having this strategic approach to when they’re leaving and they’re tracking these broad-scale climate trends,” Shuert said.

Aruna Gaitonde, Editor in Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough&Polished