Why Does Knowing Your Local Kelp Forest And Its Problems Matter?

Many people live near kelp forests without realizing it, even though these underwater forests cover nearly one-third of the world’s coastlines [1]. See Figure 1A to find your nearest forest: X marks the spot! Kelp forests are easy to recognize because of their simple structures including blades, stipes, and holdfasts (Figure 1). Knowing about your local kelp forest matters because you can learn what it offers to people and nature, and speak up if you notice it changing.

Kelp forests support extraordinary biodiversity, including some surprising creatures (Figure 1B). In South Africa, great white sharks have been filmed moving through sea bamboo kelp forests while hunting Cape fur seals [2]. Hidden amongst the kelp holdfasts are shiny, rainbow-colored abalone feeding and sheltering [3]. Most people know that warming oceans due to climate change are affecting ecosystems—this includes kelp, with certain forests in some parts of the world completely disappearing [4]. However, fewer people realize that climate change can also affect where different species are able to live by altering ocean conditions, causing, for example, a move poleward or to deeper waters. This is called a range shift. Along the east coast of Australia, warmer oceans have allowed some species of sea urchins to expand into new areas where they can overgraze kelp forests [5], turning them into rocky barrens (Figure 1C). Even when scientists identify threats and possible solutions, protecting nature can still be difficult because it takes money, teamwork, and public support.

The Importance of Kelp Forests And The Challenge of Protecting Them

Kelp forests are important for both nature and people. They provide food, support fisheries, improve water quality, and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. If we were to give a football field-sized area of kelp forest a salary for the “jobs” it does for society, it would earn more than $110,000 USD every year, or enough to buy about 314 Nintendo Switches [6]! Clearly, these underwater forests are worth protecting, but doing this effectively is not simple.

Scientists once thought they could predict the future of kelp forests by studying only one kelp species or population. However, they now know that different kelp species, and even different populations within the same species, can respond very differently to climate change [7]. Some forests decline rapidly, while others persist despite warming oceans. Scientists are now collecting more data to understand which forests may be most vulnerable and which may survive in future oceans. This information can help guide important decisions about where to focus restoration and protection efforts.

Protecting kelp forests is also a social challenge. Ecosystems people rarely hear about often receive less funding, research, and political attention. This is one reason why scientists, artists, filmmakers, and local communities are working together to increase awareness of kelp forests. Helping people recognize their local underwater forests and sharing stories of their experiences with them may become an important part of conservation itself.

Guardians Working to Restore Kelp Forests

Protecting kelp forests requires creativity, teamwork, and long-term commitment. Along the coast of Sydney, Australia, more than 70 km of coastline has lost a unique species of kelp that provides a home to crayfish, which is why it is commonly called “crayweed”. Scientists discovered that juvenile crayweed individuals (affectionately called craybies) cannot travel very far on their own, making it difficult for forests to naturally recover once they disappear.

Understanding the biology of crayweed has therefore become an important part of restoration. For example, scientists and divers restore crayweed during winter, when it is most reproductive, to improve the chances of creating new generations of craybies. Divers from Operation Crayweed (https://www.operationcrayweed.com/) also use underwater drills to attach adult crayweed onto rocky reefs, so that males and females can reproduce and help reconnect lost forests (Figure 2A).

Restoring kelp forests is exciting work, but it is also physically difficult, expensive, and slow. Rebuilding forests and the biodiversity they support can take many years, which means restoration projects often depend on long-term funding and public support. Because of this, an important part of Operation Crayweed is helping people learn about kelp forests and why they matter. School students have helped tell crayweed’s story by creating songs and animated films to raise awareness about these underwater ecosystems (Figure 2B). Overall, scientists have realized that protecting ecosystems is not only about restoring habitats but also about helping people notice, value, and care about them.

From Local Forests To a Global Movement

Some ecosystems become famous, and this helps people understand their importance and support their protection. Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is recognized around the world, but far fewer people have heard of the Great Southern Reef (GSR), the world’s largest interconnected kelp forest system stretching across more than 8,000 km of Australia’s southern coastline. Even though most Australians live close to the GSR, many people still do not realize it exists [8]. Luckily, there are people working together to teach more people about kelp through sharing stories and creating films so that more of the community understands and values these forests. Kelp conservation is also becoming a global effort. The Kelp Forest Alliance (https://kelpforestalliance.com/) brings together more than 600 people from 25 countries who are working to protect and restore millions of hectares of kelp forests around the world. By sharing scientific knowledge, restoration techniques, and new ideas, they hope to improve the future of these ecosystems in rapidly changing oceans.

You Can Help Protect Kelp Forests

Protecting kelp forests may seem like a huge challenge, but small actions can still make a difference. You can learn about kelp forests near you, share their story with others, join community events like International Seaweed Day (June 4th), or encourage your school to explore kelp ecology and conservation. Sometimes, simply helping others notice an underwater forest is an important first step in protecting it.

Glossary

Biodiversity: ↑ The variety of living things in an ecosystem, including plants, animals, fungi, and microbes. Ecosystems with high biodiversity usually contain many different species interacting with one another.

Range Shift: ↑ Movement of a species into new areas where it did not previously live. Range shifts can happen when environmental conditions change, such as when oceans warm because of climate change.

Restoration: ↑ Actions that help an ecosystem recover and become more like it was before it was damaged.

Great Southern Reef: ↑ A system of connected reefs stretching approximately 8,000 km² along the southern part of the continent of Australia and that are mostly made up of golden kelp forests.

Conflict of Interest

The author(s) declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

Written informed consent was obtained from the individual(s) for the publication of any identifiable images or data included in this article. The authors would like to say a special thank you to Leo and Phoebe as two young minds who helped with reviewing and providing feedback on the early versions of the manuscript.

AI Tool Statement

The author(s) declared that Generative AI was used in the creation of this manuscript. ChatGPT (OpenAI, GPT-5.5) was used as an editorial assistant during manuscript review to improve the clarity. It was not used to generate, analyse or interpret data, or make scientific decisions. All scientific content, interpretations and conclusions were developed,critically evaluated and approved by the authors, who take full responsibility for the final manuscript.

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