Browsing by Author "Smale, Dan"

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    The intensity of kelp harvesting shapes the population structure of the foundation species Lessonia trabeculata along the Chilean coastline
    (2021) Gouraguine, Adam; Moore, Pippa; Burrows, Michael T.; Velasco, Eliana; Ariz, Luis; Figueroa-Fabrega, Luis; Munoz-Cordovez, Rodrigo; Fernandez-Cisternas, Italo; Smale, Dan; Perez-Matus, Alejandro
    Kelp are foundation species that support high levels of biodiversity and, either directly or indirectly provide a wide range of ecological goods and services to human society. In recent decades, due to the high demand for kelp-derived products such as alginate, commercial wild harvesting has increased, leading to declines of kelp biomass in some regions. Chile accounts for 40% of the global kelp harvest, with the subtidal kelp, Lessonia trabeculata being one of the main target species. Currently, however, there is a lack of information on how different degrees of harvesting intensity, governed by distinct management regimes and their enforcement influences L. trabeculata populations. Here we examined the effect different management regimes, characterised by distinct levels of exploitation of kelp and kelp-associated fauna, have on L. trabeculata density and morphology along similar to 1600 km of the Chilean coastline. The findings demonstrated that harvesting intensity likely influences both L. trabeculata density and morphology. Juvenile density of L. trabeculata was five times higher in the most harvesting-affected areas, while kelp morphology values, including holdfast diameter, number of stipes and total length, were always higher in the less-intensively harvested areas. Our study suggests that different degrees of protection can influence density and morphology of subtidal L. trabeculata populations, which in turn has important implications for the conservation of the kelp forest ecosystems and management of this important fishery.
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    The value of ecosystem services in global marine kelp forests
    (2023) Eger, Aaron M.; Marzinelli, Ezequiel M.; Beas-Luna, Rodrigo; Blain, Caitlin O.; Blamey, Laura K.; Byrnes, Jarrett E. K.; Carnell, Paul E.; Choi, Chang Geun; Hessing-Lewis, Margot; Kim, Kwang Young; Kumagai, Naoki H.; Lorda, Julio; Moore, Pippa; Nakamura, Yohei; Perez-Matus, Alejandro; Pontier, Ondine; Smale, Dan; Steinberg, Peter D.; Verges, Adriana
    While marine kelp forests have provided valuable ecosystem services for millennia, the global ecological and economic value of those services is largely unresolved. Kelp forests are diminishing in many regions worldwide, and efforts to manage these ecosystems are hindered without accurate estimates of the value of the services that kelp forests provide to human societies. Here, we present a global estimate of the ecological and economic potential of three key ecosystem services - fisheries production, nutrient cycling, and carbon removal provided by six major forest forming kelp genera (Ecklonia, Laminaria, Lessonia, Macrocystis, Nereocystis, and Saccharina). Each of these genera creates a potential value of between $64,400 and $147,100/hectare each year. Collectively, they generate between $465 and $562 billion/year worldwide, with an average of $500 billion. These values are primarily driven by fisheries production (mean $29,900, 904 Kg/Ha/year) and nitrogen removal ($73,800, 657 Kg N/Ha/year), though kelp forests are also estimated to sequester 4.91 megatons of carbon from the atmosphere/year highlighting their potential as blue carbon systems for climate change mitigation. These findings highlight the ecological and economic value of kelp forests to society and will facilitate better informed marine management and conservation decisions.