Nature
A dead whale can feed an entire ecosystem for fifty years
When a whale carcass sinks to the deep ocean floor, it creates what scientists call a whale fall: a temporary oasis that can support hundreds of species, some found nowhere else on Earth. Scavengers strip the carcass over months, then specialized worms and bacteria break down the bones' fats for decades more. A single whale fall can sustain a deep-sea community for up to 50 years.