Kelp Rescue Initiative

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Kelp Rescue Initiative

We develop science-backed solutions for kelp forest restoration and resilience in Barkley Sound & the North Salish Sea. Follow along to learn about kelp!

We work closely with First Nations, local communities & partners to protect these vital ecosystems.

06/08/2026

Some of our team’s answers to, “How has kelp changed your relationship with the ocean?”

What’s yours?

06/05/2026

We’re excited to share a new publication from lead author and collaborators, now published in Ecological Applications.

The study combined aerial photographs, lighthouse records and underwater surveys to compare present-day kelp forests and seaweed communities in the northern Salish Sea with historical records dating back to 1972.

Among the findings, aerial photographs revealed bull kelp forests were more than 10 times larger than satellite baselines indicate. Satellite and lighthouse records suggest these extensive kelp forests collapsed decades before the 2013–2015 marine heatwave known as “The Blob,” shifting our understanding of when major kelp losses occurred.

The research also found that changes extended beyond canopy-forming kelp. Comparisons between modern surveys and scuba surveys from 1972 revealed large shifts in the broader seaweed community, including declines in dominant cold-adapted kelp and red algae species. While some warm-adapted and human-introduced species increased, they did not offset these losses.

The study describes this pattern as “deborealization,” a shift away from cold-adapted species and communities associated with cooler northern waters.

These findings highlight the importance of historical baselines in understanding ecological change. Without them, we may be greatly underestimating the scale of historical kelp loss and ecosystem change along our coast.

Read the paper at kelprescue.org/publications (link in bio) and make sure you’re following to see more insights from this research.

This research has been supported by:

, , National Geographic & , Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

06/04/2026

q̓am̓ (bull kelp) restoration in səlilwət (Burrard Inlet)

In partnership with Tsleil-Waututh Nation, this project explored q̓am̓ (bull kelp) restoration in Burrard Inlet across 2023–2024 as part of the Nation's Burrard Inlet Action Plan.

Bull kelp is a foundational species that provides habitat and shelter for herring, juvenile salmon, crabs, sea stars and many other marine species. Kelp forests also support shoreline protection, fisheries productivity, biodiversity and climate resilience.

The restoration process included:
• January: Seeding restoration materials in the nursery
• February: Outplanting at the restoration site
• March–September: Monitoring
• September: Kelp die-off and data review

Restoration methods explored included kelp-seeded ceramic tiles (glued), kelp-seeded ceramic tiles (bolted) and cobble and gravel.

Successful restoration sites balance cultural importance, ecological suitability and logistical feasibility. Key considerations included access and permitting, environmental conditions, substrate, depth and light, and grazing pressure from sea urchins, kelp crabs and other grazers.

To learn more, visit twnation.ca.

05/29/2026

Over the winter, our nursery team ran a thermal priming experiment with bull kelp gametophytes.

This is to see whether exposing kelp to certain conditions early in life may help them respond better to heat stress later on. It’s especially relevant as ocean temperatures are predicted to rise with El Niño this year.

After being grown under controlled nursery conditions, these primed gametophytes were seeded onto twine and deployed at one of our restoration sites this spring.

Next week, our monitoring team will head back underwater for an initial round of measurements and data collection to get a first look at how they’re faring in the field.

Follow along and save this post to check back in as we share what we find.

05/27/2026

Happy World Otter Day!

Sea otters are an important part of coastal ecosystems and kelp forests. By feeding on sea urchins, they can help prevent overgrazing, allowing kelp forests to grow and provide habitat for marine life.

Kelp forests support biodiversity, help buffer coastlines and play an important role in ocean health. Sea otters are one part of the complex relationships that help keep these ecosystems in balance.

To learn more about sea otters and the role they can play in kelp forests, check out our posts on trophic cascades.

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Zoomed and cropped photo. Always observe Marine Mammal Regulations and view wildlife from a respectful distance.

05/26/2026

The realities of spring monitoring (and diving) along the BC coast!

The “soupy” green water can make monitoring, navigation and underwater photography more challenging, but it is also part of what makes these waters so productive.

The low visibility and green hue is due to increasing phytoplankton, microscopic algae drifting through the water column. As daylight increases and winter nutrients remain available, phytoplankton populations begin to grow, forming the foundation of marine food webs that support everything from zooplankton to fish and whales.

Spring conditions also support kelp growth, with both kelp and phytoplankton relying on sunlight and nutrients.

Now we just have to find the kelp in it 👀

05/24/2026

Have you ever seen white, lace-like patches covering bull or giant kelp blades?

These are bryozoans, tiny colonial animals that live attached to surfaces in the ocean. Each little “cell” you see is an individual animal, called a zooid, filter feeding plankton from the water. Together, they form colonies that can spread across kelp pneumatocysts and blades.

Kelp encrusting bryozoans and kelp have what’s called an epibiotic relationship, where bryozoans live attached to the kelp surface. They’re not always a problem and, in low amounts, can be a natural part of the broader community of species living on and around kelp forests.

But when bryozoans begin covering large portions of the blade surface, they can reduce the light reaching the kelp and make photosynthesis more difficult. Heavy coverage can also add weight and drag to the blades, making kelp more vulnerable to damage and breakage.

So why are we seeing more of them?

Researchers are studying the links between increasing bryozoan abundance and changing ocean conditions. Warmer temperatures and lower wave exposure appear to favour bryozoan growth in some regions, while stressed or slower-growing kelp may be more vulnerable to heavy bryozoan loads. Observations in BC have also documented increasing occurrences in kelp beds.

One of our current projects with Abhigyan Johori at UBC is developing machine learning software to detect bryozoan coverage on kelp blades. We’ll take a closer look at that work in a future post!

05/20/2026

Kelp is a part of the brown algae family within the order Laminariales.

Its brown colour comes from pigments that help it absorb light underwater, allowing it to photosynthesize even in deeper or darker coastal waters. Depending on the species, age and environmental conditions, kelp can range from a golden tone to deep brown.

Kelp also varies in texture. Some species have smooth, flexible blades while others are thicker, rougher or covered in bumps, ruffles or ridges. These differences can help kelp withstand waves and currents in dynamic coastal environments!

The type of kelp we talk about most is the canopy-forming species, giant and bull kelp, but in BC, there are over 30 distinct species of kelp.

05/15/2026

Our monitoring season has started!

Over the next few months, our team will return to our 12 restoration sites in the Barkley Sound and North Salish Sea regions to track kelp responses and gather data at each site.

This includes things like:
- Counting and measuring kelp growth
- Surveying seeded cobble sites along transects
- Counting grazers like sea urchins and kelp crabs
- Noting what fish are using restoration areas as habitat
- Monitoring environmental conditions, including temperature, light and current

Monitoring helps us better understand how restoration methods are performing across different regions and conditions, while helping guide future restoration work and research.

We’ll be sharing updates from the monitoring team throughout the season. Stay tuned for more!

05/14/2026

Trophic Cascade in BC Kelp Forests Part 2

Kelp forests along the coast of BC have not responded in the same ways to ecological changes associated with trophic cascades. One reason is that predator presence differs across regions.

Sea otters have not recovered across their full historical range. Some regions of BC now have both sea otters and sunflower sea stars helping control sea urchin populations, while other regions relied more heavily on sunflower sea stars before 2013. Sunflower sea stars remain endangered post sea star wasting disease outbreak.

These differences influence grazing pressure, which has limited kelp persistence even where environmental conditions were otherwise suitable.

At the same time as these predator changes, the coast experienced a prolonged marine heatwave between 2014 and 2016, one of the longest and most extensive marine heatwaves ever recorded. Marine heatwaves can amplify the effects of trophic cascades by:
• stressing kelp directly through higher temperatures
• affecting growth and survival
• influencing interactions between species

Even within the same region, kelp forests can respond differently depending on local conditions. Temperature can vary over small distances, and these differences can affect kelp persistence.

Trophic cascade outcomes differ across regions because they interact with:
• predator presence or absence
• timing of predator declines
• temperature conditions
• local ecological dynamics

This means kelp forests in BC do not respond in a single, consistent pattern. Present-day kelp forests reflect both trophic cascades and climate impacts.

Which means kelp recovery strategies need to reflect regional trophic dynamics + environmental conditions.

This is why we use regional, layered approaches, including:
• sea urchin mitigation using exclusion fencing
• coordinating kelp outplanting alongside Huu-ay-aht First Nations urchin harvests
• thermal priming experiments to improve tolerance to marine heatwaves and rising ocean temperatures
• off-the-seafloor outplanting methods

Want to learn more about kelp restoration in BC? Visit kelprescue.org.

Address

100 Pachena Road
Bamfield, BC
V0R1B0

Website

https://www.kelprescue.org/

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