Whales could play an invaluable role in global efforts to combat climate change by using their enormous mass to store carbon that would otherwise pollute the atmosphere.

According to a study published in Trends in Ecology and Evolution, the planet's largest animals deserve considerable attention.

Whales, often the size of an airplane, can weigh up to 150 tons and live more than 100 years, the authors note. And, like all living things, their biomass is mostly made up of carbon.

In fact, whales make up one of the largest pools of living carbon in the pelagic ocean, the authors state, referring to open waters far from shore.

These pools of carbon are part of a marine system that is responsible for storing 22 percent of Earth's carbon, according to researchers at Southeast Alaska State University. Their size and lifespan allow whales to exert a strong influence on the carbon cycle, the authors write.

They do this by storing carbon more efficiently than smaller animals, as well as ingesting huge amounts of prey and producing large amounts of waste, the researchers noted.

One species of great whales, the mustachioed whales, have one of the longest migration pathways, which means they could potentially influence nutrient dynamics and carbon cycling on an ocean basin scale.

Meanwhile, the blue whale can live up to 90 years. The authors explained that when they die and their bodies collapse to the seafloor, the carbon they accumulate is transported to the depths of the sea.

This activity contributes to what is known as a biological carbon pump, a system in which nutrients and chemicals are exchanged between the ocean and the atmosphere.