Detection of giant marine animal graves

The image taken from the camera of the oil exploration device showed the bodies of four large marine animals crowded into a small strip of continental shelf off Angola.

Lead researcher Dr. Nick Higgs of the University of Plymouth (UK) said that around whale sharks are three rays, according to a report published on Plos One.

Unprecedented images discovered in the area stretching 1km off Angola- (Photos: Serpent Project)

'There are many studies of whale burial sites, but we have never found any giant animal carcasses on the sea floor before,' says BBC Higgs.

Whale carcasses are a gathering place for complex ecosystems, first for cadavers like sharks, then for lesser ones like crabs and shrimp, before falling into the mouth of Osedax, Also known as 'dead body' , and finally bacteria.

However, in the newly obtained image, scientists have been able to witness these processes with their own eyes, thanks to remote-controlled unmanned devices.

Researchers estimate that the bodies of large marine animals can provide about 4% of the food on the ocean floor for oceanic communities.