On the basis of submersible observations, the density of whale remains reaches up to 759.5 individuals per square kilometre. The concentration of whale falls and fossils in the Diamantina Zone raises fundamental questions about the origin of this whale necropolis.

These beaked whales possess extraordinary physiological adaptations for deep diving, routinely reaching depths more than 1,000 m and holding their breath for more than a hour. The maximum dive depth for beaked whales is estimated to be more than 3,000 m on the basis of lung collapse and oxygen storage. Thus, foraging at depths exceeding 3,000 m would be too physiologically taxing for beaked whales and may heighten the risk of fatal exhaustion or decompression sickness. Ultimately, the V-shaped topography of the Diamantina Zone may further contribute to this accumulation by funnelling and concentrating onto the sea floor the sinking carcasses caused by natural and accidental mortality.

Moreover, the investigated whale fossils, preserved for more than 5 million years, serve as an archive providing a direct, continuous record for tracing evolutionary trajectories. Comparative anatomical analysis of these remains can elucidate feeding behaviours, locomotion and ecological roles of deep-diving cetaceans. Thus, the Diamantina Zone necropolis constitutes a deep-sea fossil megasite: one that offers a window into the evolutionary history, palaeoecology and population dynamics of beaked whales from the Pliocene to the present day. Similar whale necropolises probably exist in other core beaked-whale habitats, such as South Africa, the Iberian Peninsula and off the Crozet and Kerguelen islands, as indicated by the recovery of abundant fossils by trawling, indicating that comparable hidden archives may be widespread in the global deep oceans.