kelp forests
Underwater algae ecosystems
Kelp forests are dense underwater ecosystems formed by large brown seaweeds anchored to rocky seafloors in cold, nutrient-rich coastal waters.
Like terrestrial forests, they create layered habitats—canopy, understory, and floor—supporting diverse marine life from sea otters to fish to invertebrates.
Divers explored the kelp forest off the California coast.
Climate change and sea urchin overpopulation threaten many kelp forests worldwide.
- sea ottersAquatic weasel relatives
- seaweedSaltwater aquatic plants
- mangrovesSalt-water coastal trees
- fishGilled aquatic vertebrate
- macroalgaeMulticellular marine algae
underwater · scuba diving · marine · holdfast · seagrass beds · ecosystem · Channel Islands · ocean acidification · cold water · California coast · understory · biodiversity · harbor seals · photosynthesis · plankton · towering · murky · anchored
- oceanwaves, Atlantic, sea, Pacific, tide
- ocean lifeocean, sea, sea creatures, shark, sea life
- ecosystemsrainforest, desert, jungle, ocean, lake
- European natureAlps, Pyrenees, Carpathians, Balkans, Mediterranean
- marine ecosystemsphytoplankton, oceans, zooplankton, marine life, krill
- Aquarium Featuresfish tanks, shark tanks, touch pools, viewing windows, reef sharks
kelp forestscoral reefs
Calcium carbonate marine structures
tropical reefs · mangrove forests · hydrothermal vents · open ocean
forest, forests, forestall, kelp, deforestation, deforest, reforestation, kelpie, reforest