News by Levels · Level 3 · Student worksheet

Brittle Star Fossils Hint at Life Around an Ancient Whale Carcass

In this lesson: Evaluate spatial evidence for an ancient whale fall while separating association from diet.

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Read the story

Tiny skeletal plates found beside a fossil whale in southern Denmark belong to a previously undescribed brittle star species, researchers report. The animals lived about 9.5 million years ago, according to the Museum of Southern Jutland.

The team examined sediment collected when a beaked whale’s jaw and vertebrae were excavated in 2018. Brittle star fragments appeared in three samples taken next to the bones, but were absent from comparison samples farther away.

The researchers suggest that the animals gathered on or near the whale after it died, a possible ancient example of a “whale fall”, where a carcass provides resources on the seabed. They caution that the fossils do not reveal the animals’ exact diet.

Source: Museum of Southern Jutland via Brightsurf, 2026-11-03. https://www.brightsurf.com/news/1EOMDQQL/tiny-fossils-show-brittle-stars-gathered-around-a-dead-whale-95-million-years-ago.html

Read and practise

1. Why are the samples farther from the bones important to the interpretation?

   1. They provide a comparison showing the fragments were concentrated near the whale.
   2. They demonstrate that the fragments were equally common throughout the area.
   3. They establish a precise diet by showing what the animals consumed.

2. What makes “a possible ancient example” a careful description?

   1. The fragments establish a precise food source within the whale.
   2. The pattern supports a whale-fall interpretation, while exact diet is unknown.
   3. The comparison samples showed the fragments were unrelated to the whale.

Your turn

Explain why finding brittle-star fragments near whale bones supports a whale-fall interpretation but does not identify a precise food source.

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Read online: https://newsbylevels.com/news/brittle-star-fossils-ancient-whale-denmark-november-2026/level-3/