The Narwhal Hunt Has Begun!
If you’ve been in Ocean City since Aug. 17, you may have seen a handful of narwhals, or “sea unicorns,” in businesses along the Boardwalk. Until the 30th, visitors aged 13 and under will have the chance to take part in Ocean City’s First Annual Narwhal Hunt.
The Narwhal Hunt, sponsored by the Ocean City Downtown Association, gives kids a chance to win their own stuffed narwhal, all while bringing more foot traffic to Boardwalk businesses where the narwhals are located and supporting local small businesses.
Children who are 13 and under can pick up their card, one per person, at the Ocean City Downtown Association Information Booth between North Division and Caroline streets, or at any of the 10 participating locations. These include:
The Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum, Trimper’s Red Apple stand at South Division Street, the Dough Rollers on South Division and 3rd Streets, Somerset Jewelers, Wockenfuss Candies on North Division Street, Park Place Hotel, Park Place Jewelers, Shenanigan’s Irish Pub and the Kite Loft on 6th Street.
At each of the 10 locations, kids can “find the narwhal” and a staff member will stamp their card. After they’ve received all 10 stamps, the card should be returned to the Information Booth on the Boardwalk by Aug. 30 and participants will receive their prize and an entry into a drawing for gifts from participating Boardwalk merchants.
Want to learn more about narwhals?
Free narwhal story and education sessions will be held outside the Life-Saving Station Museum Aug. 20 – 23 and Aug. 27 – 30 at 1 p.m.
Until then, here’s a bit of information about sea unicorns from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:
Narwhals have small rounded heads, short flippers with upturned tips, and no dorsal fin but an uneven dorsal ridge along the spine… [They are] one of three whale species that spend their entire lives in the Arctic—the others being bowhead and beluga whales. Narwhals are animals of myth and legend and could have been the basis for the mythical unicorn. Narwhal males (and some females) have two teeth, the left of which grows into a long clockwise-spiraled tusk extending forward from the head. Scars on narwhal males suggest that they use their tusks to joust. Narwhals are hunted for their ivory tusks, blubber, and meat.
For more information on the Narwhal Hunt, visit www.downtownassociation.net or email ocdowntownassociation@verizon.net.
