What is a kelp forest?

Kelp forests provide food and shelter for thousands of species

In ideal conditions, kelp can grow up to 18 inches per day, and in stark contrast to the colorful
and slow-growing corals, the giant kelp canopies tower above the ocean floor. Like trees in a
forest, these giant algae provide food and shelter for many organisms. Also like a terrestrial
forest, kelp forests experience seasonal changes. Storms and large weather events, like El
Niño, can tear and dislodge the kelp, leaving a tattered winter forest to begin its growth again
each spring.

Kelp forests can be seen along much of the west coast of North America. Kelp are large brown
algae that live in cool, relatively shallow waters close to the shore. They grow in dense
groupings much like a forest on land. These underwater towers of kelp provide food and
shelter for thousands of fish, invertebrates, and marine mammal species.

Kelp forests harbor a greater variety and higher diversity of plants and animals than almost
any other ocean community. Many organisms use the thick blades as a safe shelter for their
young from predators or even rough storms.

Among the many mammals and birds that use kelp forests for protection or feeding are seals,
sea lions, whales, sea otters, gulls, terns, snowy egrets, great blue herons, cormorants, and
shore birds.

These dense canopies of algae generally occur in cold, nutrient-rich waters. Because of their
dependency upon light for photosynthesis, kelp forests form in shallow open waters and are
rarely found deeper than 49-131 feet.