Narwhals are iconic Arctic cetaceans uniquely vulnerable to climate change, shipping, and noise pollution. Their specialised ecology makes welfare threats especially severe.
Narwhals face welfare threats that compound at multiple levels. Rapid Arctic warming is reducing sea ice that narwhals rely on for predator avoidance and prey access. Increased shipping traffic and seismic surveys generate noise that disrupts their echolocation and communication, causing chronic stress. When narwhals become entrapped in rapidly closing sea ice (a phenomenon called sassats), mass mortality events with high suffering occur. Indigenous subsistence hunting, while culturally significant, is now being reassessed as populations face additional climate pressures. The narwhal's extreme ecological specialisation means there is no easy refuge — protecting them requires addressing climate change at its source.