<h1 class="ql-align-center"><strong style="color: rgb(230, 0, 0);">Kelp forests</strong></h1><h3><strong>Context&nbsp;</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">A recent study published in the journal Nature revealed that <strong>Kelp forests are declining because of climate change.</strong></li></ul><h3><br></h3><h3><strong>About</strong>&nbsp;</h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelp forests are underwater forests that thrive well in <strong>cold, nutrient rich waters.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds attached to the seafloor and eventually grow to the water’s surface and rely on sunlight to generate food and energy.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">These forests are always coastal and require <strong>shallow, relatively clear water.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">These forests harbor a greater variety and higher<strong> diversity of plants and animals than almost any other ocean community.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelps live further from the tropics than <strong>coral reefs, mangrove forests, and warm-water seagrass beds, so kelp forests do not overlap with those systems.</strong></li></ul><h3><br></h3><h3><strong>Distribution of Kelp forest</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelp forests occur worldwide throughout <strong>temperate and polar coastal oceans.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelp forests have been observed throughout the Arctic by the Inuit. The <strong>Canadian Arctic</strong> alone represents 10 percent of the world’s coastlines.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">They have adapted to severe conditions. These cool water species have special strategies to survive freezing temperatures and long periods of darkness and even grow under sea ice.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">In regions with cold, nutrient-rich water, they can attain some of the highest rates of primary production of any natural ecosystem on Earth.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">Between Ellesmere Island and Labrador, as well as along the coasts of<strong> Lancaster Sound, Ungava Bay, Hudson Bay, Baffin Bay, and Resolute Bay in Hudson Bay and eastern Canada, kelp forests have been scientifically documented.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">In the northwestern Canadian Arctic, lack of rock substrate and a harsher climate support smaller, fragmented kelp forests.</li></ul><h3><br></h3><h3><strong>Threat</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1"><strong>Thawing permafrost and crumbling Arctic coasts</strong> are dumping sediments into coastal waters at alarming rates, which blocks light and could limit plant growth.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">The run-off from melting glaciers will also <strong>lower salinity and increase turbidity, </strong>which impacts young kelp.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">D<strong>estructive fishing practices, coastal pollution, and accidental damage </strong>caused by boat entanglement are known to negatively affect kelp forests.</li><li class="ql-indent-1"><strong>Sea urchin</strong>s can destroy entire kelp forests at a rate of 30 feet (9 m) per month by moving in herds. Sea otters play a key role in stabilizing sea urchin populations so that kelp forests may thrive</li></ul><h3><br></h3><h3><strong>Significance</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelp forests throughout the world play an<strong> important role in coastal economies, supporting a broad range of tourism, recreational and commercial activities.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">Kelp is used as food by the North Americans, and the kelp aquaculture industry is growing at a rate of seven per cent per year for the last 20 years globally (kelp is a coveted food source in many countries, full of potassium, iron, calcium, fiber and iodine).</li><li class="ql-indent-1">In the Arctic, Inuit traditionally use kelp as food and wild harvest numerous species.</li></ul><p class="ql-align-center"><br></p><p class="ql-align-center"><br></p><h1 class="ql-align-center"><strong>PRELIMS NOTES:</strong><a href="https://sunyaias.in/notes/prelims-2023" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 204);"><strong>CLICK HERE</strong></a></h1>