In the late 1980s, scientists discovered that when a whale dies, its carcass sinks to the ocean bottom and a new ecosystem springs forth around the carcass. The carcass becomes a food source for this new ecosystem. A team of researchers recently undertook a study of whale falls in the South China Sea. In the absence of actual whale falls, they conducted simulated whale fall experiments using cow carcasses.
Click here for original story, Researchers conduct whale fall studies in the South China Sea
Source: Phys.org