The hybrid between white whales and narwhal

The analysis shows that the skull stored in a museum in Denmark belongs to a hybrid between two Arctic whales.

Scientists from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark on June 20 said they found the first evidence of the possibility of cross-breeding between white whales and narwhal. Stable DNA and isotope analyzes on an "unusual" whale skull stored at the Danish Museum of Natural History show that the specimen belongs to a hybrid between the two species.

Hybrid whale skull at the Danish Museum of Natural History.(Photo: Phys).

Narwhals and white whales are two teeth whales that are endemic in the Arctic region. They are the closest relative of each other, which is roughly the same size but different in form and behavior. Narwhal is characterized by long, straight ivory, spiral groove and gray-brown body. Meanwhile, white whales have identical conical teeth, arranged in two rows and adults are completely white.

The hybrid is defined as a crossbreeding result between a white male and a female whale. Its skull has many similarities to its parent whales, however, the structure of the animal's teeth has a big difference. It has long horizontal teeth, spiral and heterogeneous.

Graphic simulation of hybrids between white whales and narwhal.(Photo: Phys).

"This whale has really strange teeth. Isotope analysis also shows that it has a completely different diet from parents, the possible cause of tooth structure affecting how to find food. Animals hunt in deep water columns or underneath the sea, "said Dr. Mikkel Skovrind from the Danish Museum of Natural History, co-author of the study.

Scientists have not identified the cause of promoting two species to mate with each other. This is a new phenomenon, never observed or recorded before. The team's findings have been published in Scientific Reports.