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Introduction: Looking down, from the surface kelp looks like a big brown mass, but only a few feet below the surface is a thriving ecosystem. The water is rich with nutrients and full of life. Many animals call this place home. Fish glide in between the plants in search of food. Crabs scuttle long the blades of kelp and sea otters look for urchins to eat. Without kelp, much of the life here might cease to exist, for the kelp forest is one of nature’s great feats. Many types of marine life inhabit these forests, among these organisms is kelp. About 20 species of kelp thrive in the cool waters along the pacific coast of North America. These plants can grow from depths of up to 130 feet, and reach all the way to the surface. Kelp is able two grow up to two feet a day. These plants get nutrients from seawater. Kelp plants have no real roots, instead they each kelp plant anchors itself to a rocky area or substrate by a holdfast. Root like structures called haptera securely hold the base of the plat to the rocky bottom of the ocean. Many organisms thrive in the kelp forest, but what fish prefer to live in kelp and why?
To answer this question we went to Santa Catalina Island, on the week
of October 15-19, 2007. While we were there we collected many data samples,
counted fish and invertebrates. We then analyzed our data. The following
presentation is our account of our data collected on our trip to discover
the answer of our research question, “What fish like kelp or not
and why.”
Our team had several methods and materials that we used. We snorkeled,
counted fish, took pictures, plotted points with the GPS, and observed
the marine life. When our team went on the adventures that our instructors
took us on, we took data. On the kayak, we took GPS points and wrote them
down where the kelp was. Observing the habitat when we were on this trip
was another way of taking data. All of these different types of data helped
in our project, but also helped us learn more about Catalina Island.
Research: When our kelp group went on the snorkel in Emerald Bay, we took GPS points where we saw fish in the kelp, and we also did a fish count. There was a wide array of fish around Indian Rock, and that showed the diversity of the marine life. We saw lots of Garibaldi and kelp bass. For counting the fish, our team took a clipboard and GPS. With the GPS, we plotted points where we saw fish in the kelp. Then, the other teammate checked off what the fish was and how many we saw on that snorkel. There was few, many, and average. Also, when we went on the kayak adventure, we took GPS points to show where the kelp was. This is very helpful because we can then speculate where the fish live. The other instruments that were brought on this trip weren’t needed for our project. Every day we could see the bottom regardless of the depth, unless it was really deep. So, we didn’t use the turbidity instrument or the water temperature instrument. The data that we collected only needed two things, a GPS and a clipboard.
Our team thinks that it is true that most fish live in kelp forests around
the world. If we took data that shows that fish like the kelp, then it
may be the answer to all of the kelp forests.
Before we went to Catalina, our team had to come up with a hypothesis
for our answer. Our question was,” Do fish like the kelp or not
and why?” After taking our data and observing the Catalina Island
marine life, we had our results. We found that all of the fish lived in
the kelp to some degree. We wondered why all of them didn’t live
in the kelp. After researching more, our team saw that some fish like
the shovelnose guitarfish didn’t live in the kelp or sharks and
other schooling fish, like anchovies. Whenever we were snorkeling, we
would see shovelnose guitarfish on the bottom. We believe they were there
because they blend in with the sandy substrate. Providing cover for them
if they lived in the kelp, they would stick out. The other fish need the
kelp to survive. Kelp provides multiple habitats for about every kind
of fish and lots of energy. If it weren’t there, the fish would
have to look everywhere for food and shelter.
Not only do fish need kelp, invertebrates and plankton need it, too. Octopuses
blend in with the rocky bottom and kelp. Wavy Turban Snails and sea cucumbers
need kelp for its energy. Also, if there weren’t any food, then
the sea cucumber population would die off because there wouldn’t
be any dead fish to eat. El Niño years severely hurt the kelp forest.
Last year, at Catalina Island the kelp forest wasn’t even there.
It was a barren sea bottom. Sea urchins also help with eating the kelp.
When an El Niño year hits, the population of sea urchins sky rockets.
Then, they eat all of the kelp. In a regular year, a kelp forest can be
sustained even with a whole marine ecosystem depending on it for food.
Since all of the kelp was gone, fewer fish were there. That demonstrates
that the fish at Catalina Island are dependant on the kelp for food and
shelter. Everything is interconnected, and has to depend on each other.
Otherwise, we wouldn’t see the beautiful kelp forest that we saw
on our trip.
Conclusion:
During our trip we collected many different data sources. We learned a
lot because of this data, and solved our question, which was, “where
do the fish live?” We discovered through research, that different
species of fish live in different places. We determined that bottom dwellers
and fish that swim in schools prefer to live in the sandy bottom of the
seafloor. The reason bottom dwellers live there is that they need the
sandy bottom to camouflage with the surroundings, for protection and for
hunting. The fish that live in kelp live there for the same reason. They
are able to swim and hide in the kelp and get their food through the kelp.
We determined that the there are fish that thrive in kelp and that there
also some fish that thrive in the sandy bottoms of the seafloor.
If we were to go back to Catalina Island another time, we would wish to
utilize the following resources. Even though that we had many ways to
collect data, there are ways that would extend our accuracy of data. First
of all if we could be able to scuba dive it would be a great asset. With
a scuba tank we could dive under the ocean to look at more marine life.
Also we could see more of a variety of fish. Most importantly we could
dive deeper to inspect the bottom dwellers that inhabit Catalina Island.
The difficulties with this are that not many people are certified scuba
divers. Also it is very expensive and would take more time to set up.
Another thing we could do would be to go to the other parts of the islands.
If we did this our data would be more accurate and precise. Also, it would
be different if the data we collected were during different days, months
and years. Even though this all these ideas would be helpful, it would
be expensive and beyond the scope for a school trip. With the given data
and sources we had enough to write a field project.
Works Cited
The Amber Forest and California Marine Life