Spider Crab Whalefall - Monterey Bay Aquarium, California, USA

In this deep-sea exhibit at Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, giant, gangly Japanese spider crabs pick their way across the bones of a model sperm whale, and for all their size, they're surprisingly calm about it.

The scene recreates a whalefall, which is what happens when a whale dies and sinks to the ocean floor and its remains become a feast for scavengers, with fish and other creatures making their home all around the skeleton.

The crabs can stretch up to 12 feet (3.8 m) from claw to claw, yet they often barely move, because sitting still saves energy in the deep sea, where food is scarce. The cam is live during the aquarium's daytime hours.

Did You Know? A single whalefall can feed a whole community of deep-sea life for decades, as different animals move in to eat the blubber, then the flesh, and finally the bones.

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