{"id":42163,"date":"2024-10-02T13:37:37","date_gmt":"2024-10-02T11:37:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4f633c84-4aa9-4ff9-808f-4d86211d0052"},"modified":"2024-10-02T14:27:25","modified_gmt":"2024-10-02T12:27:25","slug":"what-happens-to-dead-whales-how-their-humongous-carcasses-create-a-whole-new-ecosystem-that-will-last-for-decades","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/what-happens-to-dead-whales-how-their-humongous-carcasses-create-a-whole-new-ecosystem-that-will-last-for-decades\/","title":{"rendered":"What happens to dead whales?\u00a0How their humongous carcasses create a whole new ecosystem that will last for decades"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ever wondered what happens when a whale dies in the ocean? Joanna Bagniewska explains <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 02 October 2024 at 11:37 AM<\/p>

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Dead whales sink to the ocean floor, reaching depths of several thousand metres relatively intact. Their lipid- and protein-laden bodies create unique, nutrient-rich ecosystems that may sustain creatures of the abyss for decades.<\/strong><\/p>

The whales\u2019 flesh is picked away by sharks<\/a>, crabs and hagfish<\/a> \u2013 the latter can absorb nutrients directly through their skin while they forage inside carcasses.<\/p>

Whale skeletons are then covered with colourful, delicate, flower-like creatures \u2013 zombie worms. These underwater relatives of the earthworm<\/a> don\u2019t have a mouth and guts, but instead secrete acid and enzymes to drill into bones, and feed with the help of symbiotic bacteria.<\/p>

The acid borings also double up as shelter holes, and a single whale skeleton can house between half a million and a million adult zombie worms.<\/p>

Unfortunately, commercial whaling reduces the number of sunken carcasses, and thus removes valuable sources of nutrients, potentially leading to a lower species richness in the depths.<\/p>