Whale Fall: What Happens When Whales Die
By: EjazUlHaqBhat
Image: Unsplash
When a whale dies, its body sinks to the ocean floor, where it provides a concentrated food source for deep-sea organisms
Image: Unsplash
This process is called a whale fall. The whale carcass attracts opportunistic predators like sharks and seabirds
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The first organisms to arrive are large scavengers like hagfish, sleeper sharks, and crabs, consuming the soft tissues of the whale
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After the soft tissues are gone, specialised organisms like "bone-eating worms" will burrow into the whale's bones, consuming the marrow and nutrients within
Image: Unsplash
The whale fall creates a unique ecosystem with multiple trophic levels, supporting a diverse array of deep-sea creatures for a prolonged period
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Whale falls are rare, but they're most often seen along the migratory routes of whales
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Whales are some of the largest animals in the ocean, and their bodies can take a long time to fully decompose
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This is because the deep sea is colder and the water pressure is greater
Image: Unsplash
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