Ancient Whale Graveyard Discovered in Chile, Solves Mystery of Sudden Death at Sea [VIDEO]

A team of scientists uncovered a massive ancient whale graveyard near the Pan-America Highway in Chile. This astonishing fossil discovery will help scientists decipher the mystery of 'sudden death at sea'.

Mass strandings of whales have been a mystery for decades. The occurrence of these events in today's time can be investigated but the strandings that occurred some millions of years ago are extremely challenging to analyze. But  a team of scientists  has provided the first confirmed  example of frequent mass strandings of marine mammals in ancient times.

In the year 2010, a large fossil site of ancient marine mammal skeletons was discovered during an expansion project of the Pan-America Highway in the Atacama Desert of Northern Chile. Further examinations of the fossils by paleontologist revealed that the fossils were some 6-9 million years old. The area of the find is known as Cerro Ballena , which means Whale Hill in Spanish.

 In this study the team examined the fossil site and discovered that there were four distinct stranding in the past. All the strandings occurred  because of  'toxic algae' surmise the scientists.

Nicholas Pyenson, paleontologist at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and lead author of the research said, "Harmful algal blooms in the modern world can strike a variety of marine mammals and large predatory fish. The key for us was its repetitive nature at Cerro Ballena: no other plausible explanation in the modern world would be recurring, except for toxic algae, which can recur if the conditions are right."

The fossil site was a real treasure trove. The team got its hands on the remains of 10 different marine vertebrate.  The scientists not only found skeletons of over 40 large baleen whales but the team also found fossilized remains of extinct sperm whale and walrus like whale. Skeletons of billfishes, seals and aquatic sloths were also seen hidden among the sediments. Analysis of the skeletons suggests that these marine animals died at sea.

"There are a few compelling modern examples that provide excellent analogs for the patterns we observed at Cerro Ballena-in particular, one case from the late 1980s when more than a dozen humpback whales washed ashore near Cape Cod, with no signs of trauma, but sickened by mackerel loaded with toxins from red tides," said Pyenson.

With the help of 3-D imaging experts the scientists scanned the entire site. The fossils retrieved from 2010-2013 were shifted to a museum and the digital data and 3D scans were recorded.

Based on the analysis of the fossils, the scientists conclude that toxins produced by potentially harmful algal blooms poisoned most of the marine vertebrates near Cerro Ballena some 5-11 million years ago during the late Miocene era. The vertebrates were poisoned either by feeding on contaminated prey or inhalation, triggering a rapid die off at sea. The high tides later lifted these carcasses to sand flats beyond the reach of the marine scavengers.

Since the fossils were retrieved in four different layers, the scientists believe that there were four stranding events that occurred between 10,000-16,000 years in the same site.

Pyenson said, "Cerro Ballena is the densest site for individual fossil whales and other extinct marine mammals in entire world, putting it on par with the La Brea Tar Pits or Dinosaur National Monument in the U.S. The site preserves marine predators that are familiar to modern eyes, like large whales and seals. However, it also preserves extinct and bizarre marine mammals, including walrus-like whales and aquatic sloths. In this way, the site is an amazing and rare snapshot of ancient marine ecosystems along the coast of South America."