RANKIN INLET
Little did Noel Kaludjak realize when he lost the tag for his narwhal tusk, it would take about four years before he would ever see it again.

Noel Kaludjak displays the new tag for his narwhal tusk he received after a fouryear wait in Rankin Inlet this past week. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo

Kaludjak came upon the tusk while in the Northern store in Coral Harbour in 2010.

He said while he was in the Northern he came across the store manager who just happened to be doing an inventory on narwhal tusks at the time.

Kaludjak said he dropped by the office to look at the collection of tusks and get the prices on the ones that caught his eye the most.

He said one tusk had a lower price than the others, so he asked why.

"Apparently, someone had used some kind of tool to touch it up a bit," said Kaludjak.

"He gave me a good offer, so I bought it and had it carved right through by a local carver in Coral Harbour and it's beautiful.

"I had it, and its tag, in Coral when I was offered a good job in Rankin Inlet in 2012.

"I don't know what happened but when we moved to Rankin, somehow the tag disappeared and that's when my troubles began."

Kaludjak let a wildlife officer know what had happened and was told he'd have to turn the narwhal tusk in because he no longer had a physical tag for it.

He said he was told an application would be submitted for another tag for the tusk, but nothing ever seemed to happen from that point.

"As the years went past, I kept asking about it and they kept telling me people from Fisheries and Oceans in Iqaluit would come to Rankin and replace it. I guess they're short staffed, or whatever, but I have no clue why something like this, just getting another tag for it, would take three years.

"Finally, I found out Hunter Tootoo was the minister of Fisheries and Oceans, so, knowing him personally, I sent him an e-mail about it.

"I had an affidavit from the RCMP stating I had really lost the tag for the tusk, and it wasn't long before I received an e-mail back saying they would work on it and, in just a couple of weeks, I had a new tag!"

Kaludjak said it took another 11 months before he was actually able to take the narwhal tusk home this past week, on May 10.

He said you would need something like wire cutters or bolt cutters to remove the new tag from the tusk.

"It's very, very important to have a tag for your tusk because it could be confiscated, and you could end up in some serious trouble because there's no proof it was caught legally.

"If I move again, I would just need a permit from the wildlife office and I can take my tusk with me with no problems. I was getting desperate waiting so long so, out of desperation, I sent an e-mail to Hunter (Tootoo) and I'm so happy I did.

"It does make you wonder though; three years waiting and nothing, and then one e-mail to Hunter and, boom, there's the tag."

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