Narwhals more at risk to Arctic warming than polar bears - AP

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Source: Associated Press

Narwhals more at risk to Arctic warming than polar bears

By SETH BORENSTEIN – 9 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — The polar bear has become an icon
of global warming vulnerability, but a new study found
an Arctic mammal that may be even more at risk to climate
change: the narwhal.

The narwhal, a whale with a long spiral tusk that inspired
the myth of the unicorn, edged out the polar bear for the
ranking of most potentially vulnerable in a climate change
risk analysis of Arctic marine mammals.

The study was published this week in the peer-reviewed
journal Ecological Applications. Polar bears are considered
marine mammals because they are dependent on the water
and are included as a species in the U.S. Marine Mammal
Protection Act.

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The narwhal, which dives about 6,000 feet to feed on
Greenland halibut, is the ultimate specialist, evolved
specifically to live in small cracks in parts of the Arctic
where it's 99 percent heavy ice, Laidre said. As the ice
melts, not only is the narwhal habitat changed, predators
such as killer whales will likely intrude more often.

-snip-

Read more: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5j6OhKt7hhu7e6WfTgGH8mm_Sj7cQD9092AE00