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Chinese Study Finds 485 Whale Falls Sequester 6.7 Mt Carbon

6/11/2026

Summary

Story summary

Chinese Academy of Sciences researchers documented 485 whale-fall sites, including five active, in the Diamantina Fracture Zone.
The sites span about 1,200 km, may hold over ten million carcasses, and contain 5.3 million-year-old bones including the extinct beaked whale Pterocetus diamantinae.
Researchers observed dense communities of jellyfish, brittle stars, bone-boring worms and bivalves on the falls, sequestering roughly 6.7 million tonnes of carbon.

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Story summary

Chinese Academy of Sciences researchers documented 485 whale-fall sites, including five active, in the Diamantina Fracture Zone.
The sites span about 1,200 km, may hold over ten million carcasses, and contain 5.3 million-year-old bones including the extinct beaked whale Pterocetus diamantinae.
Researchers observed dense communities of jellyfish, brittle stars, bone-boring worms and bivalves on the falls, sequestering roughly 6.7 million tonnes of carbon.