- There are many communities that form at whale carcasses
- There have been many counts of whale skeletons which have shown specimens of a newer mollusk specie
- Aside from the mollusks, a new specie of limpet were described in 1985
- Mollusks around a whale carcass were discovered to be chemosynthetic
- In 1989 it was suggested that whales were "stepping stones" for chemosynthetic organisms to travel to different communities
- The first stage of whale fall is called mobile scavengers. Hagfish tunnel through the whale meat, sleeper sharks take bigger bites. This feast can last up to two years, depending on whale size
- The second stage of whale fall is known as enrichment opportunist stage, lasts up to two years. Low diversity, but high density of primarily bristle worms and crustaceans feed on nutritious soft tissues left over by the scavengers
- At the estimate of around 69,000 whales die per year, scientists estimate there are 690,000 skeletons of the nine largest whale specie rotting at any time
- Newer studies have shown that there is a consistent group of organisms that depend on whale falls
- An oxygen poor area of the ocean can lead to a decrease in rate in decomposition
- Vents in the ocean are fairly old and may the origins of life, however whales are fairly new in comparison
- Recent research has shown that it is not a whale's size that matters to chemo-synthetic organisms rather it is the lipid content.
- Researchers have found that similar communities existed before whales on the carcass of ancient marine reptiles
- There is evidence that there may be repeated evolution of specialized communities of animals dependent on larger vertebrate carcasses
- Studies have shown the insides of those early aquatic reptiles were similar to that of the whale. The bones had lots of marrow space which could have contained lipid
- More evidence is required to link whale falls to reptile falls
Summary of Author:
In the article "The Prolific Afterlife," the author talks about how the carcass of whales are converted to an ecosystem called a whale fall. Upon dying, the whale sinks to the ocean floor where the carcass is then a source of food for many organisms. The flesh and bones of the whale are a source of food and nutrients to these organisms. Aside from the animals there are also decomposer which chemosynthetic. Chemosynthetic means those organisms pull energy from ocean vents. However these chemosynthetic organisms have been around much longer than the whales, leading researchers to believe these organisms have had other carcasses to feed on such as that of some dinosaurs. Studies have shown that the innards of the two are very similar. However, more evidence is required to link reptile falls to whale falls.
My Summary
After I read the article, the fact that whale skeletons can build a community under the sea, it makes me think that whales are not only harmful to organisms but also helpful to other organisms. kind of like the best of both. The whale skeletons are a stepping stones to a new community in the oceans. I think further experiments and research of the whale fall outs can help us understand the ecology and evolutionary history of whale falls. If there is a link between the reptiles and the whales, I believe there has to be more discoveries or findings of more prehistoric fossils, which look la lot more like the modern whale.
So what?
Whale skeletons are the stepping stones to make a new community on the oceans. Whale fall outs can be linked to reptile fall outs.
What if...?
The whale skeleton communities were discovered earlier? Would we have been farther than we are now with the research?
Says who?
Crispin T. S. Little
What does this remind me of?
The article 'Life in the Ocean', both involve the discovery of new species not seen before in the ocean.