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In Alaskan kelp forest ecosystems, sea otters are the keystone species that mediates this trophic cascade. In Southern California, kelp forests persist without sea otters and the control of herbivorous urchins is instead mediated by a suite of predators including lobsters and large fishes, such as the California sheephead.
The Giant kelp marine forests of south east Australia is a community extending from the ocean floor to the ocean surface, on a rocky substrate, and has a ‘forest-like’ structure with many organisms occupying its various layers, including pelagic and demersal fishes, sea birds, turtles and marine mammals in addition to the invertebrate ...
Kelp forests are some of the most productive ecosystems in the world - they are home to a great diversity of species. Many groups, like those at the Seattle Aquarium , are studying the health, habitat, and population trends in order to understand why certain kelp (like bull kelp ) thrives in some areas and not others.
“Kelp forms whole forests that are supporting so many other species and so it just has this cascading effect on the near-shore ecosystem when you lose your kelp,” Elsmore said. “You’re ...
Kelp forests occur worldwide throughout temperate and polar coastal oceans. [10] In 2007, kelp forests were also discovered in tropical waters near Ecuador. [11] Physically formed by brown macroalgae, kelp forests provide a unique habitat for marine organisms [12] and are a source for
Kelp forests are also some of the world's largest carbon sinks, and the Great Southern Reef therefore acts as a buffer against climate change. [7] Unfortunately, an estimated 95% of the giant kelp forests off the coast of Tasmania have died off over the past few decades due higher water temperatures and the long-spined sea urchin. [6] [8]
Frequently considered an ecosystem engineer, kelp provides a physical substrate and habitat for kelp forest communities. [50] In algae (Kingdom: Protista), the body of an individual organism is known as a thallus rather than as a plant (Kingdom: Plantae). The morphological structure of a kelp thallus is defined by three basic structural units: [49]
Ecological habitats found in the sanctuary include extensive kelp forests, rocky reefs, deep-water coral gardens, sandy beaches, coastal dunes, and wetlands, the latter serving as nursery grounds for numerous commercial fish species and important habitats for many threatened and endangered species. [4] [7] [8]