Whale fall

We all know that whales are giant mammals that live in the ocean. What will happen to this enormous marine organism after it dies?

What is a whale fall?

A Whale Fall occurs when a whale dies the carcass sinks to the seafloor. The skeleton of a 90-ton whale contains 5 tons of oil. The animals body provides more nutrients to the tens of thousands of organisms that visit it. (More than 400 animal species maybe more)

Organisms that feed on whale falls 🌊

•  Scavengers are responsible for removing the flesh (soft tissue) from the whale include:  hagfishes, sleeper sharks, crabs and others

• The colonizers are those that arrive and stay for extended periods of time, living off the tissue left by organisms in the first group: Snails, slugs, worms, shrimp, crabs and other crustaceans
• Organisms that are considered bone-eaters, are present for long periods, living off the oil contained in the bone. A very diverse group of organisms including worms that are able to break down the whale bone
• What is left of the whale skeleton is decomposed by more bone eating worms, or nishers, or is covered by sediments on the seafloor

My thoughts about the Whale fall…

When whales die, they sink to the bottom of the sea and become a source of life on the ocean floor. They support a lot of life and form small ecosystems. Creatures on the sea floor are rare, each doing its best to absorb the limited energy available. However, the carcass of a whale can temporarily enrich the seafloor. For the deep-sea organisms, whale fall is nothing less than a treasure. Nowadays, however, these treasures that provide energy for the deep sea are becoming less and less available. Why? Because the human commercial whaling has decimated the whale population. It may be that for humans, only one head of whale has been caught. But for the creatures of the deep sea, what is lost is an oasis of abundance nutrient and a chance to survive and reproduce.

What we should do as human beings？🥲

•  Strengthen the management of whale fishing, and reduce the accidental injury to whales, and the waste of resources.
• Prohibit illegal fishing activities
•  Strictly control the discharge of domestic and industrial sewage along the coast
• Learn about the ocean
• Making an effort to improve waste sorting

‘ One whale falls, all things are born’. A whale’s energy comes from the ocean, and when it dies, it returns it to the ocean. It is based on such an energy cycle that life on Earth can last for billions of years without ever ending.

Hope you enjoy~ 😍