Kelp forest

1. Kelp forest By: Cierra Murphy, Penelope Luna, Rhys Bailey, Davis Cline, Raji Maki and Steven Johnston

2. Physical Description • Full of kelp and different animals • Cold because kelp forests live in cold, nutrient rich waters • Towards the surface there is a lot of light • Towards the bottom it is dark from the shadows of the kelp

3. Biological Description • A lot of kelp that grows very high, algae and other plant life • A nursery for animal life

4. Where they are found in the Northwest • Some found off the coast of Oregon • Most found off the coast of California and off Mexico

5. Value of Kelp Forests • Hundreds of animals depend on kelp forest because they live and breed there • Kelp extract is found in everyday items like toothpaste, ice cream, and salad dressing

6. Kelp Rock Fish • Scientific name is SebastesAtrovirens • Adaptations are the spines on its back for protection against enemies and its color to blend in with the kelp • They feed on small crabs, shrimps, amphipods, isopods, squids, and some fishes, including juvenile rockfishes. • Humans hunt and eat them

7. Giant Kelp Fish • Scientific name is Heterostichusrostratus • Adaptations are they change color to blend in, the shape of their bodies help them blend into kelp, and they males guard the eggs • They eat crustaceans, small fish and mollusks • Humans, sharks and turtles eat them

8. California Barracuda • Scientific name is sphyraenaargentea • Adaptations are they have teeth to catch prey, they pump jaws to move faster, move slow towards prey so they don’t scare them away then snap to catch them • They eat small fish • Humans eat them

9. Cabezon • Scientific name is Scorpaenichthysmarmoratus • Adaptations are Their eggs are poisonous to humans, and many other mammals and birds. Their young drift out to sea, and then grow into small, silvery fish that often hide under mats of drifting kelp. As they grow older, the fish settle into tide pools, and then move to reefs and kelp forests. • Diet: crustaceans, fishes, mollusks

10. Bat Ray • Scientific name MyliobatisCalifornica • Their adaptations are they have a venomous tail, they burry themselves in sand to catch prey, and They are able to locate prey by detecting the electrical fields produced by muscles and nerves of animals • They eat shrimp, crabs, and bottom dwelling invertebrates • Humans eat them

11. Brown Turban snail • Scientific name: Tegulabrunnea • Adaptation: The turban snail reproduces by releasing their eggs and sperm into the water where they collide and fertilization occurs • What they feed on: Their diet consist of several different forms of algae including diatoms and Bryozoans(moss animals)

12. Sunflower Star • Scientific name is PycnopodiaHelianthoides • Adaptations are it has 24 arms, and a total of about 15,000 tube feet. It can move at up to 40 inches per minute (0.038mph). • It eats small invertebrates such as crabs, snails, sea cucumbers, other small shell animals, and other sea stars.

13. Red Octopus • Scientific name Octopus rubescens • Adaptations are they can change color, they have an ink sacks for protection, and are small to fit in cracks between rocks • They eat fish • Humans and squid eat them

14. California Moray Eel • Scientific name is GymnothoraxMordax • Adaptations are their large teeth, their snake like bodies allow them to go between rocks, and it does not use gills to breathe • They eat crustaceans, octopuses and small fish • Humans eat them

15. Lesser Scaup • Scientific name is Aythyaaffinis • Their adaptations are they are buoyant so they can float on water, they dive shallow by increasing blood volume and then blood oxygen stores while decreasing respiratory volume, body allows them to dive without floating back to surface • They eat insect larvae, crustaceans, and mollusks • Snapping turtles and larger birds eat them

16. Sea Otter • Scientific name is EnhydraLutris • Adaptations: they tie themselves up in the kelp so they don’t float away when they are sleeping and they are excellent swimmers • They eat clams, snails, abalone, crabs, starfish, mussels, scallops, squid, chitons, small octopuses, sea urchins, prawns, sea cucumbers, limpets, marine worms, several types of fish, and a variety of other things • Sharks, stellar sea lions, and killer whales eat otters

17. Zonation • Canopy zone- This zone is made up primarily of kelp. Specifically Macrocystispyrifera. This kelp dominates the zone and prevents other species from growing here. • Midwater zone(stipe zone)- This zone is the largest of the three. It is home to the most of the species of fish and kelp present in the kelp forest. • Benthic zone- This zone is on the very bottom of the kelp forest. Here the kelp has no way to float and lay on the floor. Invertebrates overrun this zone and algae is growing on almost every surface.

18. References • http://life.bio.sunysb.edu/marinebio/kelpforest.html, Kelp Forests;   • http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/about/ecosystems/kelpdesc.html, Ecosystems: Kelp Forests; Office of Natural Marine Sanctuaries, Apr. 26, 2007 • http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/eviau/edit557/oceans/norma/oklpfst.htm, The Kelp Forest; 1994 • http://jellieszone.com/kelpforest.htm, Forests of Kelp; Jellies Zone • http://www.sanctuarysimon.org/monterey/sections/kelpForests/overview.php?sec=kf, Monterey Bay Sanctuaries: Kelp Forest; SIMoN Organization