Canopy-forming giant kelp and bull kelp are foundation species that form one of the most structurally-complex coastal ecosystems worldwide. Kelp forests are prolific primary producers in coastal zones and provide the biogenic habitat needed to support a diverse array of ecologically, economically, and culturally important species. In British Columbia (BC), kelp forests provide critical habitat to imperiled fishes, including salmon and herring, as well as invertebrates like the endangered Northern abalone. There is considerable concern over the global decline in kelp forests, which are experiencing increasing pressure from a suite of stressors (e.g., overharvest, water pollution, invasive species), many of which may interact with and be exacerbated by climate change. 

BC’s coastal First Nations have stewarded their traditional territories since time immemorial and hold kelp, herring, and salmon as interconnected and inseparable to their cultures. Off the Central Coast of BC in 2015, Coastal Guardian Watchmen (an Indigenous-led stewardship program) observed a largescale outbreak of kelp-encrusting bryozoans (KEB; Membranipora spp.), a native, immobile epiphyte with planktonic larvae that settle and grow primarily on kelp. These observations coincided with marine heat waves, suggesting KEB outbreaks are temperature-induced and potentially linked with climate change. Encrustation by KEB can negatively affect kelp in a panoply of ways that collectively threaten kelp forests. Though some data has been collected, there is limited information on the spatial-temporal dynamics of KEB or the environmental factors that may be leading to outbreaks in BC.

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This project is in close partnership with, and co-developed by, the Haida, Heiltsuk, 'Na̱mg̱is, Snuneymuxw, and T'Sou-ke First Nations. We also have partnered with Hakai Research Institute and the Marine Plan Partnership for the North Pacific Coast (MaPP). By applying ecological theory and Indigenous Knowledge to how kelp forests tolerate and recover from KEB, amid phenological shifts due to climate extremes, we hope to illuminate their future health and persistence. Information generated here will guide conservation and management efforts such as defining the quality of juvenile salmon migration routes, planning for sustainable wild kelp harvest, and guiding optimal conditions for the establishment of marine protected areas under BC’s Network Action Plan. Moreover, evidence provided from this research will be vital in identifying and prioritizing geographic areas that could support effective kelp forest restoration (i.e., what areas are least likely to suffer a KEB outbreak). The successful restoration of kelp forests not only provides critical habitat to various species, helping to “bend the curve” of biodiversity loss and re-establish healthy wild populations, but also supports a blue-carbon ecosystem that offers a nature-based solution in mitigating the effects of climate change.

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We are just getting started and look forward to the next few years of research!​