Researchers invite pupils to help save the kelp forest
Alongside 4th graders, Philip James and Oda Bjørnsborg are setting out on a mission to uncover the disappearing kelp forests. They’ll be visiting primary schools to ignite students’ curiosity about seaweed, kelp, sea urchins, and the delicate balance of the ocean’s ecosystem
The kelp forest is shrinking bit by bit, but why is it disappearing?
Few people know that the kelp forest stores essential oxygen just like the rainforest. We are entirely dependent on the kelp forests to be able to breathe and live.
However, in vast areas along the Norwegian coast, the kelp forests have disappeared, leaving barren “desert zones” where lush kelp once thrived.
A spiny invasion
Looking down at the seabed, we can glimpse part of the reason for the kelp forest’s disappearance.
There, we find a species that has overtaken the kelp’s territory.
Where there was once kelp forest, the seabed is now covered with dense sea urchin populations.
“Sea urchins consume the kelp, and although sea urchins have a natural place in the ecosystem, in many areas they have overrun large stretches,” says senior researcher Philip James.
“When there are too many sea urchins, they don’t get enough food. They cluster together, and if we harvest them, they contain little nourishment because they haven’t eaten enough kelp,” James adds.
He emphasizes that sea urchins are not as malevolent as they might sound.
“But they become a problem when they occur in such large numbers,” he points out.
“Why have sea urchins begun consuming the kelp forest in such large numbers?
“We do not know for certain, but there are various theories”,
“One theory suggests that the reduction in predator fish species such as cod and wolffish has created favourable conditions for the sea urchins”, James concludes.
A new generation
James and Bjørnsborg want to make the next generation aware of the consequences of the sea urchins’ greedy appetite.
They will visit primary schools in Tromsø to stimulate students’ curiosity about seaweed, kelp, sea urchins, and the fragile balance of the ocean’s ecosystem.
“Visiting students and inspiring curiosity about the research we conduct at Nofima is a fun way to share science,” says Bjørnsborg.
“We’re very excited and hope that Tromsø schools are ready to learn more about the vanishing kelp forest,” she concludes.
Facts about the Project
The Search for the Missing Kelp Forest project is funded by the Norwegian Research Council. Its aim is to engage primary school children in their local environment and the ocean’s ecosystem. Through this project, students will discover that sea urchins, seaweed, and kelp are local, nutritious, and low-emission foods we should consider eating more in the future.
Would your school like a visit from the Search for the Missing Kelp Forest project?
Contact Philip James at philip.james@nofima.no or- Oda Bjørnsborg at oda.bjornsborg@nofima.no.
If your school is interested in receiving a teaching module about sea urchins, seaweed, and kelp aligned with 4th year science curricula, please get in touch.
NRK evening news
Thursday November 7, 2024, NRK broadcast a report about the project.
