Narwhals are highly specialised Arctic cetaceans whose welfare is increasingly threatened by climate-driven habitat changes, noise pollution from shipping, and the physiological stress responses these elicit.
Narwhal welfare is threatened by the compounding effects of climate change on their highly specialised Arctic niche. Their unusual stress response — high adrenaline combined with low heart rates — suggests an evolutionary adaptation to predator avoidance that may be maladaptive when triggered by boat noise or human activity, potentially causing cardiac complications. Increasing ship traffic through previously ice-covered Arctic routes is both a noise pollution problem and a collision risk. Meaningful narwhal welfare protection requires policy responses to Arctic shipping governance and climate change, not just local management.