Found a Kelp Tag?
As part of the study, 2000 kelp plants off the Santa Barbara coast have been tagged with orange 3” x 5 “ non-toxic biodegradable wooden cards. Each card has a unique five-digit identifier code that corresponds to its initial position off the coast in a kelp forest. If you have found a kelp tag on the beach please report the time and location found as this information will help with the study by providing data on where kelp is most likely to wash ashore.
An example of a kelp tag/card is given to the right. It will probably be found on the beach attached to the holdfast of a kelp plant. The unique card identifier is the 5 digit number at the top of card.
UCSB Kelp Study in the local news
February 12, 2015
Wrack Without Ruin
by Richie Demaria
The National Science Foundation awarded a $997,312 grant to UCSB researchers this week for a study of the cross-ecosystem relationship between kelp forests and beach environments. A team of graduate and undergraduate UCSB researchers, led by Jenifer Dugan, associate research biologist at the school’s Marine Science Institute, will examine how washed-up drift kelp, or wrack, contributes to the food webs in sandy beach ecosystems.
Read MoreFebruary 9, 2015
UCSB Researchers Awarded $997,312 NSF Grant to Study Kelp Ecosystems
by Chris Meagher for Rep. Lois Capps
Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, announced Monday that UCSB researchers were awarded a National Science Foundation grant totaling $997,312 to study the link between kelp forests and beach ecosystems.
The project, conducted by a team under Jenifer Dugan, associate research biologist at the Marine Science Institute at UCSB, seeks to understand how near-shore kelp forests influence our sandy beaches...
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