A new strain of kelp can help support sustainable farming.
A new strain of kelp can help support sustainable farming.
Like most aquatic vegetation, kelp is being negatively impacted by climate change. Warming ocean temperatures have led to shorter growing and harvesting seasons, including for sugar kelp, one of the most commonly farmed kelp species. The loss of kelp populations can significantly impact ecosystems, and potentially the growing demand for sustainably farming food, feed, fertilizer, medicine, and cosmetics.
To give kelp a chance against climate change, scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have identified kelp species with natural adaptations to cope with heat. In a new study published in the Journal of Applied Phycology, WHOI experts identify new strains that could prove to be more resilient in warmer waters.
Researchers first assessed the heat tolerance of kelp gametophytes, the microscopic male and female stages that fertilize and produce kelp blades. Gametophytes were isolated from 14 different populations collected from nearshore waters between New York and Maine. Prior to testing their tolerance to temperatures as high as 24°C (75°F), these were grown in a lab environment for 4.5 years until the second round of research.
Read more at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Image: The study’s lead author, Sara Gonzalez, and co-authors Hadley Kerr and Maggie Aydlett, record phenotyping data at WHOI’s Environmental Systems (Credit: ©Woods Hole Oceanographic)
