Whale Fall

WHALE FALL   by Tim Griffin 2022

Down at the bottom of the sea there’s not a lot to eat
All the creatures are hungry and cold
A sleeper shark is dreaming of a tasty treat
And of a whale way above getting old
Up on the surface a cetacean takes a final breath
Then it sinks and passes away
But down in the darkness an old whale’s death
Is gonna bring a brighter day

They’re waiting for a whale fall (la la la)
Everybody gonna gather in joy and love
Of the whale fall (la la la)
When a mountain of food falls from up above

Now the sleeper shark is wide awake, biting through the skin
Tearing off big chunks of meat
And all the hagfish are happily burrowing in
Because they seldom have so much to eat
The mobile scavengers will dine for a year or more
Before only a skeleton remains
What a fine fiesta for the carnivores
Down on the abyssal plain

There’s no complaining on the whale fall (la la la)
Everybody gonna gather in joy and love
Of the whale fall (la la la)
When a mountain of food falls from up above

Now there’s a great big skeleton, still good to eat
For the creatures who can process the bones
The many molluscs, crustaceans, and polychaetes
Down in the locker of old Davy Jones
Sulfophilic bacteria slowly digest
All the lipids that are locked inside
All the creatures of the deep are deeply blessed
By the body of a whale that died

They’re all excited by the whale fall (la la la)
Everybody gonna gather in joy and love
Of the whale fall (la la la)
When a mountain of food falls from up above

After decades of feeding the abyssal friends
There are no nutrients left in the bones
But the dead whale’s usefulness does not end
Because it still provides a fine home
It gives the sessile organisms the substrate they need
To survive on the abyssal plain
All the little filter feeders are happy indeed
To be living on the whale’s remains

They’re staying on the whale fall (la la la)
Everybody gonna gather in joy and love
Of the whale fall (la la la)
When a mountain of food falls from up above

Whale fall (la la la)
Benthic beasties with tentacles, teeth, and claws
Love the whale fall (la la la)
And they’re waiting on the bottom with open jaws…
For you.

Notes

One key element of any ecosystem is DECOMPOSITION, the process of breaking down dead organisms and returning their components to the environment for use by other organisms. Death is always sad, especially for beloved animals such as whales; but it's important to understand that one organism's death makes life possible for others.