Photo Awards 2024 Finalists

Photo Awards 2024 Finalists

Explore these “forgotten forests” from the first ever Kelp Forest Photo Awards and discover a wild and wonderful world just off your local beach. Featuring over 350 submissions from 17 countries around the world, these awards celebrate these incredible ecosystems, the life they support, and the people who depend on them for their well-being.

Find yourself lost amongst the golden swaying branches of the kelp and reimagine your relationship with the ocean.

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Kelp Macro

Winner - Floral animal

Michael Sswat

Hanging from the Laminaria blade, this stalked jellyfish is catching its prey. Illuminated from below with a dive torch. Photo edited in Adobe Lightroom.

Runner Up - Life Looks For Life

Eric Wahl

Tubesnout eggs develop on a kelp stipe in Monterey Bay, California, a sign that spring has sprung and that life will continue to persist in the underwater rainforest.

Second Runner Up - Otherworldly Oval-Anchored Stalked Jelly

Jackie Hildering

This stalked jellyfish is believed to be a new, yet-to-be-described species of Haliclystus. Size ~2 cm and was at 3 metres depth. Here it is hanging on Sea Colander Kelp (Agarum clathratum).

Horned Nudibranch

Kimberly Nesbitt

SCUBA diving in a place no one had ever been diving before is a scary enough feat, let alone in a place infamous for downdrafts, ripping currents, and deepwater emergence. I had a feeling this seamount would be incredible though, so we went anyway. We were rewarded. This Horned Nudibranch is taking advantage of not just the kelp, but the bryozoans that grow on kelp in late summer in Alaska. The bryozoans colonize the kelp and die when the kelp dies at the end of the summer, but the nudibranchs can feast in this underwater version of their salmon run: lots of food in a short period of time.

Nestled Flame

Grant Evans

Kelp plays an important part in shaping the biodiversity of a coastline. This gasflame nudibranch would not have the crinoids to lay in if it weren't for the kelp preventing the surge from buffering against the rocks. Just as much the feather star shrimp above the nudibranch would have no place to call home. The kelp is a natural barrier, slowing water down before it has a chance to make the ability for benthic organisms to establish more difficult. Whole walls full of crinoids, sponges, ascidians, and more can be found within the protective hold of kelp forests, whilst the rocks on the outside of the shallow regions may be bare or only covered in algaes.

Not Just A Fluke

Patrick Webster

Two growing blades of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) make for a whale of a time in the kelp kathedral of Monterey Bay, California

Working On Pneu Material

Patrick Webster

Flowing with a growing apical meristem of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) in Monterey Bay, California

Kelp at the End of the World

Cristian Lagger

A cluster of squid eggs attached to Macrocystis pyrifera, the giant kelp species that dominate the magic submerged forests at the end of the world (Patagonia, Argentina).

Slug and Seaweed

Brian Skjerven

An opalescent nudibranch (Hermissenda crassicornis) crawls through a kelp forest in God's Pocket. These sea slugs feed on just about anything: hydroids, jellyfish, crustaceans, and even other nudibranchs. They ingest the nematocysts (stinging cells) of their prey and incoroprate them into their own body as a defense mechanism.

Sunlit Symphony: Colors of Kelp

Wanda von Bremen

Cochayuyo (Durvillaea antarctica) is mostly used as a food source in Chile. Preparing the kelp for market is almost a craft. During this process, it is carefully spread out so the sun can dry it. As it dries, the algae changes color from black to green to yellow to red. The picture shows dried kelp photographed against the sun, displaying all its colors.

Kelp Wildlife

Winner - Kelp Gunnel Portrait

Phillip Lemley

Kelp Gunnels spend their time sliding through the tangled stipes of giant kelp. Due to their shy nature and impressive camouflage, this species is not as commonly spotted and photographed as other fishes in the waters of Monterey Bay. They typically disappear long before you can point them out to your buddy or point your camera in the right direction. Capturing this gunnel with some of its noodle-like body exposed made this moment feel like an extra special gift from sweet sweet mama ocean.

Runner Up - Canopy Hunter

Jon Anderson

A Brandt’s cormorant zooms through the kelp forest foraging for small fish and other animals living among the kelp. Look closely at the kelp frond in front of the cormorant’s beak and see if you can spot the shrimp! Monterey Bay, California, USA

Second Runner Up - Harbor Seal

Christine Dorrity

A curious harbor seal follows divers through the kelp forest. Curious yet shy, harbor seals will maintain a watchful distance until comfortable enough to move in for a closer inspection.

Busy Bird

Sage Ono

In the late afternoon light, a Brandt's cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) dives beneath the canopy to search for food. Kelp forests are often lauded for their incredible benefits to marine ecosystems as a foundational species. They are sustenance, stability, and safety for countless fish, invertebrates, and marine mammals, but their benefits do not end there. Kelp forests are also a great boon to many birds by sheltering coastlines and cultivating a veritable buffet of snacks.

Kelp Forest Angel

Douglas Klug

Only slivers of bright sunlight from above can penetrate the thick kelp canopy around Anacapa Island in the Channel Islands National Park. Life within the kelp forest, however, carries in the daytime shadows, and this Bat Ray (Myliobatis californica) cruises between the stalks of kelp like a giant bird with it's wings spread 3' (1M) across. I was fortunate enough to be in position as the ray slid right over the top of me, allowing me to capture this image of the ray set against the sunlit kelp forest canopy.

Forest Brawl

Michelle Manson

Dropped in off the boat at San Miguel Island in the Channel Islands and came across these two kelp crabs having a dispute on who had the right to be on the kelp leaf. I'm not sure who won but it was a sight.

Hanging Around

Michelle Manson

Kelp crabs love to weave themselves in the kelp strands and just hang around watching the ocean life go by

Envy

Amy Lawson

In South Australia, two Australian Sealions lay against a bed of kelp together while another peers over at them from a distance.

The Watchman of the Kelpforest

Gunnar Oberhösel

Red Romans are the most curious fish species patrolling the depths of the kelp forest. Their striking red appearance gave them the Afrikaans name "rooiman", which translates to red man in English. In the protected waters around the Cape, they can reach a phenomenal size of up to 50 cm.

Pedal To The Nettle

Patrick Webster

A brown sea nettle (Chrysaora fuscescens) comparing palettes with a local brown alga (Macrocystis pyrifera), Monterey Bay, California

Leopard Lurker

Helen Walne

Diving down through a latticework of thick kelp, I came across this leopard catshark lying in wait for prey. The sunlight shafting through the kelp turned its skin into rainbow refractions and, keeping my distance, I watched it slowly curl itself into a ball to ward off any threat. These beautiful animals are nocturnal and elusive, only seen occasionally by divers. Their striking markings are extremely variable, often because of their location, and I feel very lucky to have had his moment with one in the forest.

JellyFish

Jellyfish

At first, I thought this man-of-war fish had been snagged by the venomous tentacles of the night light jelly. I thought it was dead. But on closer inspection, I saw it wriggle and open its mouth, and then realised this pelagic fish – which is usually associated with the Portuguese man o war (or bluebottle) – was hitching a ride inside the jelly, all the while nibbling on its ‘upholstery’. Kind of like catching an Uber that has in-car snacks!

Get off my Turf!

Tim McClure

A male California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) overtop a California golden gorgonian (Muricea californica) displaying territorial behavior in response to his reflection in my dome port.

Connections to People

Winner - In The Shadow of the Canopy

Joseph Platko

A freediver (Rebekah Phillips) pauses to enjoy the view and tranquility under the canopy of giant kelp before heading back up to the surface for another breath.

Runner Up - Kelp Yourselves

Patrick Webster

Photographing the photographers framing a piece of perfection from a magic day in the kelp forests of Monterey Bay, California

Second Runner Up - Entangled

Wanda von Bremen

We are all interconnected; our lives are entangled with kelp. Having worked with kelp farmers in the south of Chile, it is beautiful to see the interplay between Cochayuyo (Durvillaea antarctica) and the kelp farmers on the beach. They live deeply intertwined with the rhythms of Cochayuyo, migrating seasonally to their homes and sheds along the waterline. Here, Cochayuyo has woven its way into the human world. The picture shows how kelp is braided into the hair of the algae farmer Pamela.

Coastal Forest

Nuno Vasco Rodrigues

A freediver explores a dense coastal kelp forest of furbellow (Saccorhiza polyschides) in Peniche, Portugal.

Parting the Canopy

Oriana Poindexter

Giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forest off La Bufadora, Baja California, Mexico

Into the Woods

Johnie Gall

Until you become a diver, you can't quite fathom the expansiveness of a kelp forest. Even the murkiest, coldest days in the forest ignite the imagination of what's possible under the surface and back home above.

Narnia: Diving into a Different World

Gunnar Oberhösel

Plenty of dive spots in Cape Town can be considered special, but some stand out as they offer a different experience. Narnia is one of them. After a 15-minute freeze-swim from shore, scattered boulders indicate that we have reached Narnia. An opening between the rocks offers a glimpse into a different world. A deep breath takes us down into the depths of the kelpforest. Down here, the world slows down, and we adapt our pace to the ocean rhythm. There is a wish to belong and stay. Maybe one day it will become true, maybe one day we will find Narnia.

Descending into the Forest

Jon Anderson

Red gorgonians and dense kelp forests characterize Channel Islands National Park off the coast of Southern California, a favorite destination for local divers. Anacapa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA

Chasing Kelp #2

Josie Iselin

An evocative depiction of bull kelp, or Nereocystis luetkeana. Scans are combined with cyanotypes made of the same specimens, creating a meditation on our human interaction with kelp by the process of making imagery of it.

Red Ab Workout

Patrick Webster

Hand-harvesting giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) for the sustainable mariculture of red abalone (Haliotis rufescens) in Monterey Bay, California. The Monterey Abalone Company is one of two remaining abalone farms in California, and the only one to raise their abs in-ocean. With the continuing closure of wild-harvested red abalone in the North Coast due to climate and grazer-decimated kelp forests, this farm and its tireless workers provide of the few remianing sources for coastal Calfornia's signature seashelléd seafoods.

Kelp Ecosystems (Wide Angle)

Winner - Hooded Nudies

Brian Skjerven

A group of hooded nudibranchs (Melibe leonina) congregate in God's Pocket Marine Park off the north end of Vancouver Island, Canada. The only species of melibe in North America, it plays an important role in the health of kelp forests. During wam periods, large numbers of them will attach to kelp to mate and feed, using their large, distinctive, oral hood to capture small prey floating in the water. They help control the population of hydroids and other organsims that feed on seaweed. And besides their unique, translucent appearance, as a defense mechanism they secrete a fluid that smells like watermelon.

Runner Up - Schooltime Blues

Sage Ono

A school of blue rockfish laze in the upper reaches of a kelp forest. It is no secret that foundational species like giant kelp play an invaluable part in keeping ecosystems diverse, productive, and healthy, but that can be difficult to grasp without seeing it firsthand. This scene shows not only the density of fish that a healthy kelp forest supports, but also the beauty of the natural underwater cathedral that shelters them. Though places like this are dwindling, they are a blessing to the species that inhabit them and the industries that depend on them. Taken in 2023 at Monastery beach, California, USA.

Second Runner Up - Stars and Sunbeams

Jon Anderson

An orange bat star traverses a reef blanketed in red coralline algae complimented by the greens and blues of the sunlit kelp forest overhead. Monterey Bay, California, USA

Summer Kelp

Xaime Beiro

In the summer months in Galicia, Kelp is king in the shallow waters. Dense forests full of life, from adults resting to safe spaces for the younger ones.

Kelp Growth

Brandon Huelga

A classic portrait of Giant Kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera), displaying how the pneumatocyst and blade patterns change as a stipe grows. Giant kelp can grow up to 60cm per day in ideal conditions, up to over 30m in total length. Peering up into a giant, healthy forest, branches reaching for the sun, is one of the most beautiful sights in our world, and one that must be preserved.

Kelp Glory

Christine Dorrity

A stock of kelp grows toward the surface seeking sunlight in Catalina Island, California.

Magnificence In The Water Woods

Patrick Webster

A school of blue rockfish (Sebastes mystinus) seeks shelter in a freshly-sprouted grove of bull kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) repopulating a former urchin barren in Monterey Bay, California

Red lipped gooseneck barnacles in kelp

Laura Tesler

These red lipped gooseneck barnacles (Pollicipes polymerus) are found at Nakwakto Rapids in British Columbia, Canada. This is the site of the fastest tidal exchange on earth, 16 knots. This site is only accessible for diving during certain times of the year and it is a long boat ride from Port Hardy on Vancouver Island. The dive window is about 30 minutes long, and must be strictly observed for everyone's safety. The rewards are great for the intrepid photographer as there are lush kelp beds and thousands of these beautiful barnacles.

Underglory

Patrick Webster

Southern sea palm kelp (Eisenia arborea) in all of its epibiontic understory glory in the pews of a kelp kathedral in Monterey Bay, California

Crystal ball

Irene Middleton

A Crystal jellyfish hovers near a Kelp covered reef at the Poor Knights Islands marine reserve in northeastern New Zealand

Fantasia

Helen Walne

Cape Town’s kelp forests are among the most pristine in the world and are home to intricate and crucial ecosystems that teem with life. Sea stars clamber up reefs in search of snacks, shoals of mackerel resemble mercury balls as they move in unison through the dappled forest, numerous species of catsharks stalk the undergrowth, jellyfish pulse in drifts of pink tulle – and we humans move through the water filled with awe at light-shafted corners quietly and colourfully going about their business.

Canopeace Of Mind

Patrick Webster

Cod rays sun-bursting through the stained glass canopy of the giant kelp kathedral (Macrocystis pyrifera) of Monterey Bay, California

Patagonian coasts

Joel Reyero

Half land half sea, overhead photo that highlights the contrast of Kelp on pastels shores at Deseado's Port, South Atlantic Ocean

Liquid Gold

Joseph Platko

The calm conditions off of San Clemente Island (Channel Islands) glassed off the surface enough to show the golden reflections of new giant kelp (macrocystis pyrifera) growth.

Great Southern Reef

Winner - Kelp Tentacles

Hunter Forbes

Almost indistinguishable from the kelp around it, a giant cuttlefish shifts in mesmerising colour and texture amid a halo of mysid shrimp.

Runner Up - The final frontier

Scott Bennett

Shot of range extending sea urchin (Centrostephanus rodgersii) in far southern Tasmania, at the last remaining stronghold of giant kelp in Australia. These urchins have arrived in Tasmania in recent decades in response to climate change and are responsible for catastrophic overgrazing of kelp forests.

Second Runner Up - Golden dragon

Catherine Holmes

A beautiful golden weedy sea dragon glides above the verdant Kelp in Sydney harbour. Weedy sea dragons (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) are part of the seahorse family, found only along the Southern coast of Australia. Difficult to spot, these mythical looking creatures with large eyes and intricate ornate patterns blend seamlessly into their rich, leafy, golden kelp environment, moving slowly and gracefully with the tidal flow .Whilst protected against fishing, and removal from their environment, their survival is hugely impacted by denudation of the kelp and sea grass they need for camouflage. Kelp forests in Sydney are thinning due to the impact of climate change and rising ocean water temperatures, as well as human pollution which threatens the seadragons fragile and preferred environment.

Tending the Octopus Garden

Hunter Forbes

In the underwater garden at the bottom of one of Tasmania’s last remaining giant kelp forests, a curious Maori octopus extends its tentacles and wanders toward me.

Reflections

Amy Lawson

An old bull Australian sea lion stares directly at the camera. His eyes all dropping giving me the feeling he'd seen many things in his life time. He approached me slowly, swimming up to the camera dome, gazing at his own reflection in the glass. I wonder if he saw how beautiful he is.

One With The Forest

Amy Lawson

Captured in Esperence, South Western Australia. This leafy sea dragon was positioned so perfectly amidst the reef, displaying its unique kelp like appendages.

Dragons Den

Amy Lawson

A vibrant leafy sea dragon occupies a small cave in the rock formations. Perfectly designed to camouflage into the colourful corals and lush kelp forests that occupies the surrounding space, keeping it safe in its protective home.

The Hypnotist

Francesca Page

In the winter months of South Australia, these waters host one of the world’s most unique and spectacular wildlife events. From May to August each year, more than 250,000 Giant Cuttlefish migrate to the cold and rocky waters here to mate and then die. I lay amongst the seaweed, surrounded by hundreds of Giant Cuttlefish battling It out for the females hiding below. I watch two males eyeing each other up, their male dominance and need to mate overpowering their senses. The start of elaborate colour and shape-shifting show paired with intimidating skin displays began in front of my very eyes. Let the Fight begin!

In the 90’s these incredible animals were nearly wiped out due to overfishing. In the space of 3 weeks, 38 boats caught 270 tonnes of Giant Cuttlefish. In the years following their population dwindled to next to nothing. But due to conservation pressures a permanent ban on fishing for Giant Cuttlefish has been put in place in this area allowing them to bounce back to healthy numbers. And now instead of fishing them, we dive with them to enjoy their beauty and wonder.

Hidden Dragon

Ian Segebarth

A male Weedy Sea Dragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) lurks among the kelp off the southeast coast of Tasmania. As can be seen here, males of this species carry their fertilized eggs on a brood patch located on the underside of their tail.

Golden Ray

Ian Segebarth

A Crossback Stingaree (Urolophus cruciatus) glides through Golden Kelp (Ecklonia radiata) in Fortescue Bay, Tasmania. Once a vast Giant Kelp forest (Macrocystis pyrifera), this area is now almost entirely composed of Golden Kelp.

Kelp For Our Future

Winner - Urchin Undertakers

Sage Ono

A swarm of purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) assaults the holdfast of a giant kelp thallus. After the exceptional marine heatwave and the rise of sea star wasting syndrome in 2013, sunflower stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) in California have mostly become a memory. This keystone species once kept the urchins in check, but now the swarms are free to ravage the once lush kelp forests with reckless abandon. Today, seasonal kelp coverage in Monterey Bay is less than 25% what it was a decade ago. The drastic decline in kelp forests has rippling effects across the entire ecosystem and all of the species that depend on this foundational species. Although there are restoration projects in process, the road to recovery looks to be a long one. Taken in 2023 in Carmel, California, USA.

Runner Up - Symbiosis

Giacomo d'Orlando

A juvenile six month old Ecklonia radiata or ‘golden kelp’ being reared in the aquarium at Watermans’ Bay Aquarium in Perth, Western Australia. This golden kelp individual was grown from a remnant population of survivors from the 2011 marine heatwave and are expected to be more resilient to the current and future ocean conditions as sea temperatures change. Golden kelp is one of the most widespread kelps globally, and is the main kelp found across Australia’s Great Southern Reef, where it forms vast forests that are the home and food for thousands of unique species of animals. Over the past 50 years there has been an accelerating loss of kelp forest cover globally with over one million hectares of kelp forests currently considered to be in a degraded state. In Western Australia, researchers at the university of Western Australia are trialing a novel technique, ‘Green Gravel’, to restore up to 100,000 ha of kelp forests that were lost during a marine heatwave in 2011. Green Gravel is a technique whereby baby kelps are ‘seeded’ onto gravel and rocks and then outplanted in the field following a period of being reared in an aquarium. The juvenile macroalgae can overgrow or move off the substrate and attach to the underlying reef, forming the basis of a new macroalgal forest that can expand naturally over time.

Second Runner Up - Lurking Urchin

Jon Anderson

A purple urchin lurks beneath one of Monterey’s remaining healthy giant kelp forests; countless other underwater forests in the region have fallen to these voracious predators. Monterey Bay, California, USA

Self Seeding

Jarrod Borod

Associate Professor Scott Ling inspects a young but very important giant kelp. This self seeded individual was found growing 5 meters away from large adult kelp that were planted 2 years previous as part of a restoration project in Tasmania, Australia.

A signal of success: bull kelp restoration in northern California

Abbey Dias

Less than 5% of historical bull kelp canopy remains of the rugged coastline of Northern California. Scientists brave the harsh conditions of cold water, low visibility, and large swells to try and bring the kelp back. This experimental technique, involving seeding twine in the lab with microscopic bull kelp spores and planting it on the field on underwater infrastructure, proved to be successful in 2023 and presents hope for growing restoration projects.

Between Two Worlds

Luba Reshitnyk

I was conducting a drone mapping survey while two divers from the Hakai Institute were exploring a bull kelp forest surrounded at a monitoring site in coastal British Columbia. I was struck by being able to see the encroaching urchin army - a visual literal boundary between two ecosystems. Image taken with a DJI Phantom 4 Pro drone.

Invasive Sargassum

Christine Dorrity

Invasive sargassum, known by Californians as the 'devil weed' encroaches on native kelp species in Catalina Island, California.

Blanket of Purple

Jon Anderson

Commercial urchin diver, Grant Downie, quickly works to remove a thick blanket of purple sea urchins from Noyo Bay in Fort Bragg as part of a state-sponsored program aimed to restore kelp forests. Mendocino, California, USA

Bosques sumergidos del fin del mundo

Armando Vega

Extreme scientific expedition to investigate the carbon dioxide sequestration capacity of one of the southernmost kelp forests in the world: Peninsula Mitre, Argentina.

To connect kelp forests with people sensitively, the sportswoman and professional freediver Camila Jaber, together with the underwater photographer Laura Babahekian, created artistic expressions on these southern forests.

eKelp

Piotr Balazy

The Underwater Visual Profiler (UVP6) deployed at the base of a kelp forest during an experiment focused on studying the particles reaching the seabed within the Patagonian kelp forests. This instrument was part of a logger array designed to measure various parameters within the kelp environment. In the backdrop, sediment traps are visible. Tierra del Fuego, Beagle Channel

Stories from the Kelp

Winner - Of Blades & Spines

Kate Vylet

Driven by climate change, a cascading series of events have tipped the balance of California's kelp forests over the past decade. Warm water events weakened kelp growth and disease decimated sea star populations. Purple sea urchins, starved by the decline of their favored food source - drift kelp - and emboldened by the loss of their sea star predator, emerged from their crevices to seek algae. As they roamed across the reefscape, they grazed through an already depleted forest, diminishing it further. In some areas the kelp was all but lost, replaced by purple fields of spines known as urchin barrens - a stable but less diverse ecosystem.

Alarmed by the erosion of their local ecosystem, citizens, organizations, and governments banded together to find solutions for a changing kelp forest. Their approaches and efforts vary, but they're united in their resolve to save the kelp forest they love.

Despite the dire circumstances, in some regions the kelp has stood against these environmental stressors. In central California, patches of forest have held strong even as they are interlaced with barren. And recent years of cold upwellings have supported an annual resurgence of young kelp, reinforcing these remaining strongholds in a new equilibrium.

Through everything, the native purple urchin has been vilified for its conspicuous role in the loss of kelp. But, like the kelp itself, the urchin belongs to the underwater forest and plays an essential role in this vibrant ecosystem. Ultimately the imbalance taking place is steered by the intangible forces of climate change - a shift both kelp and urchin are struggling to survive.

But if the forest has taught us anything, it's that nature is resilient. And in its resilience is a message of hope.

Runner Up - A Kelp Story

Sage Ono

From snails to whales, California's kelp forests are an invaluable habitat to an incredible array of species. Divers, photographers, and nature enthusiasts from across the world make the pilgrimage to see these underwater forests. Unfortunately, there has been a massive loss of kelp along the California coast since the warm water blob in 2013 with certain region's kelp cover declining by 95%. California has recovered from losses like this before in whale, otter, and ground fish populations, but the future of the state's kelp forests hangs in the balance. Coalitions of NGO's, governmental working groups, and local communities are banding together to monitor and restore the state's kelp forests and avoid the worst.

Kelp Restoration through Urchin Harvest

Matt Testoni

Long Spine Sea Urchins have been destroying vast swathes of Tasmanian coastline but over grazing. Through a partnership with fishers and a large amount of research, a successful urchin fishery has started and is allowing kelp restoration to slowly occur.

Stories from the Forest

Nuno Vasco Rodrigues

Furbellow (Saccorhiza polyschides) forests are relatively common in Portugal, particularly in the summer months. Often covering large areas of the coast and forming dense habitats, these underwater forests are home to an abundant and diverse marine life.

Kelp Farming in Southeast Alaska

Kimberly Nesbitt

Kelp is the future. My home state of Alaska has put lots of funding into research and development of a thriving kelp mariculture industry here. From wild harvest of the kelp spores that we do every year, to planting the kelp on lines in the ocean at study sites, to measuring the kelp throughout the winter and spring (yes, winter in Alaska on the water!), to harvest and processing, it's a booming new industry and incredible to be a part of. Additionally, this is a field of science with more women than I've seen in almost any other section of industry.

The Iridescent Ones: Abalone Restoration on the US Pacific Coast

Oriana Poindexter

The white abalone (Haliotis sorenseni) is an endangered marine snail native to the California coast. Abalone are key grazers who maintain diversity in the kelp forest understory, but are now threatened with extinction due to historic overfishing. Today, wild populations of white abalone are not showing signs of natural recovery, and they need our help to hold on. Intervention is needed now to give abalone populations a chance to stabilize before the threats of habitat loss, warming water, and marine pandemics become more urgent. A partnership of more than a dozen organizations has come together to help this species with a breeding and outplanting program to reestablish self-sustaining white abalone populations in the wild.

Purple Urchin Imbalance

Jon Anderson

Using a flatbed scanner, the life-cycle of bull kelp, or Nereocystis luetkeana, is narrated from tiny babies, through majestic maturity, to its reproductive phase, and then the end of life, cast up on the beach as wrack, all within one year.

Bull Kelp Life Story

Josie Iselin

Using a flatbed scanner, the life-cycle of bull kelp, or Nereocystis luetkeana, is narrated from tiny babies, through majestic maturity, to its reproductive phase, and then the end of life, cast up on the beach as wrack, all within one year.

Ocean Reforestation: Crayweed Revival

Tom Burd

Crayweed, (Phyllospora comosa) is believed to have formed thick forests throughout Sydney’s coastal waters, as it naturally does along other parts of the NSW coastline. However, in the 1980s it largely disappeared without any documentation, likely due to high water pollution and untreated sewage outflow.

“Operation Crayweed” was formed to reverse this trend and is now a flagship project at the Sydney Institute of Marine Science, in collaboration with UNSW and the University of Sydney. Excitingly, the restoration works involve the local community in a collaborative effort to reintroduce this vibrant seaweed to Sydney's picturesque coastline.

Kelp: We Need These Algae

Patrick Webster

If there was a forest fire underwater, would we see the smoke? Ten years on from a marine heatwave that devastated the Caifornia coast's kelp cathedrals, a resolute band of ocean gardeners is working hard to retsore what we've lost. Climate change and its disturbances to the ocean are no longer a theoretical future—they're our present predicament. It will be the work of our generation to help the kelp.