Answer:
The disturbance that causes the succession begins with a large whale dying and sinking to the bottom of the ocean floor. The whale carcass attracts scavengers and decomposers who eat the decaying meat.
Then, within a year, most of the whale's tissues have been eaten. The remainder of the carcass is then eaten by a much smaller number of fish. The decomposition of the whale's body will enrich the surrounding sediments with nutrients.
When only the skeleton is left, a third community moves in. Heterotrophic bacteria will begin to decompose the oils found inside whale bones. During this process, they will release chemical compounds that serve as energy sources for other bacteria. This chemosynthetic bacteria will also support a wide variety of nearby organisms living on the bones.
