When a whale dies and its body sinks to the bottom of the sea - it becomes a food source for an entire ecosystem. The problem of course, is that it is nearly impossible to predict when and where the whale is going to die, and once it settles to the ocean floor - it doesn't last very long. So it comes as a surprise that some marine species have become specialized in feeding on whale cadevers.

Researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden have discovered nine previously unknown species of "bristleworms" that feed only on these dead whale skeletons. Four of the new species were found on whale cadavers placed off the coast of Strömstad, Sweden while five species feed on whale bones in the deep waters off the coast of California. Using molecular data analysis the family tree of bristleworms was explored to reveal the "cryptic species" - that is, species that despite looking identical are genetically very different.

The analyses show that the adaptation to a life on whale cadavers has occurred in species from different evolutionary paths and at several points in time. The study also shows that some species that are assumed to inhabit many different areas globally, so-called cosmopolitan species, may in fact be cryptic species. This finding suggests that the species diversity in the oceans may be much higher than previously thought - and may be very significant for our understanding of how animals spread around the world and of how many different species dwell on our planet.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090921091601.htm