Classification

Monodon  monoceros
"one tooth"   "one horn"

·       Domain...........................................................................................Eukarya
                    o   The domain Eukarya is one of the three described domains. It consists of organisms that have a true nucleus. Narwhals have cells containing nuclei. Another example of an organism that is in this domain is Plasmodium (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).

·       Kingdom............................................................................................Animalia
                    o   The kingdom Animalia is a diverse kingdom. It is one of the three multicellular kingdoms. Narwhals are classified in the Kingdom Animalia because they are multicellular and lack cell walls like all animal cells. Another example of an organism that is in this Kingdom is the Bald-faced Hornet  (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).

 ·       Phylum..............................................................................................Chordata
                    o   The Phylum Chordata is a diverse group whose members have a notochord (or backbone), nerve cord, and longitudinally differentiated bodies. Narwhals have these characteristics. Another example of an organism that is in this Phylum is the Wild Turkey (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).

·        Class................................................................................................Mammalia
                    o   The members of the Class Mammalia produce milk using mammary glands and have hair at some point in their life. Narwhals belong in this class, even though they have very little hair. Another example of an organism in this class is the Siberian Tiger (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).

·        Order.................................................................................................Cetacea
                    o   The Order Cetacea consists of the whales, including dolphins and purpoises. Narwhals are included in this order because they share many physical characteristics and genetic lineage with whales. Another example of an organism that is in this order is the Blue Whale (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).  

·         Family................................................................................................Monodontidae
                    o   The Family Monodontidae contains only two species, the narwhal and Beluga whale. Both are arctic dwellers that lack dorsal fins and have dome shaped heads. (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).  

·         Genus................................................................................................Monodon
                    o   Only one species, the narwhal is a member of the Genus Monodon, meaning “one tooth” (Encyclopedia of Life 2013).

·         species................................................................................................monoceros

Phylogenetic treeFigure Credit: Graphodatsky et al.

This phylogenetic tree shows the narwhal Order of Cetacea in relation to the other orders within the Class Mammalia. This tree was developed based on years of genetic data.

























Phylogenetic tree 
Figure Credit: Simon & Schuster

This phylogenetic tree shows the narwhal Family of Monodontidea within the Order Cetacea. This tree was developed based off of genetic marker data.

 

Where to go next

Home
Created November 2013.