Marine heat waves may be impacting one of the ocean’s major sources of food and shelter for sea life—kelp.
Marine heat waves may be impacting one of the ocean’s major sources of food and shelter for sea life—kelp.
A recent study by SFU post-doctoral student Jordan Hollarsmith published in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology examined how giant kelp respond to increasingly warm and acidic oceans. Researchers found that in lab settings, high-latitude kelp completely failed to reproduce when stressed by heat.
Hollarsmith, who undertook the research as a graduate student at UC Davis, is now applying her expertise at Simon Fraser University, where she is working with biology chair and professor Isabelle Coté on strategies for managing stressors on kelp in the Salish Sea off B.C.’s southern coast. The researchers are bringing together various experts on local kelp, from scientists to First Nations groups, and will also work to determine what management actions might mitigate similar impacts on Salish Sea kelp.
Continue reading at Simon Fraser University.
Image via Jordan Hollarsmith.
