An image of the tropical kelp forest. Credit: Charles Darwin Foundation/University of Malaga
The Charles Darwin Foundation-led research holds value due to the discovery of a brand-new species of this type of alga, previously mainly discovered in chillier waters.
María Altamirano, a researcher from the University of Malagas Department of Botany and Plant Physiology, belongs to the scientific team collaborating on the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF)- led Seamounts Project. The project has uncovered a large kelp forest on the top of a seamount at a depth of around 50 meters in the southern Galapagos Islands.
The significance of the research, released in Marine Biology, lies in the discovery of a new species of kelp in the area and perhaps in science. Carried out in cooperation with the Galapagos National Park Directorate and National Geographic, this research has actually defined the ecology of this new environment.
Havens for variety
Kelps are brown algal seaweeds, well-known for reaching very big sizes, which form marine forests in high densities. Similar to coral reefs and mangroves, these forests are very crucial for the maintenance of marine biodiversity, as they provide security and food for many types.
As kelps are cold-water types, many of these forests are discovered solely in polar or warm-cold areas and shallow seaside areas since they need consistent light. However, this kelp forest of the Galapagos Marine Reserve lies in a tropical region away from seaside areas.
The significance of this research study, led by the Charles Darwin Foundation, depends on a new species record of this kind of alga that, until now, it has actually been mostly discovered in colder waters. Credit: Charles Darwin Foundation/University of Malaga
” This is the very first time that such a extensive and dense kelp forest has actually been registered in this part of the Galapagos and at such depths, since what we found looks extremely various from the Eisenia galapagensis kelp types, discovered in this location in 1934″, discusses Salomé Buglass, CDF researcher and lead researcher, who includes that it is almost two times the regular size.
Remotely operated vehicles
As basic diving is limited to depths of 40 meters, CDFs research groups counted on brand-new innovations, such as from another location run vehicles (ROVs), to explore, document, and define these deep-sea environments.
Thanks to the installation of a mechanical claw to the ROV, in 2018 Professor María Altamirano, who was in the island chain as planner of a partnership job of the University of Malaga, together with the scientist at the University of Granada Julio de la Rosa, were able to analyze specimens of this freshly registered alga, “which is necessary to determine its taxonomy and is still under study”.
As standard scuba diving is limited to depths of 40 meters, CDFs research study groups relied on brand-new technologies, such as from another location run lorries (ROVs), to check out, file and identify these deep-sea environments. Credit: Charles Darwin Foundation/University of Malaga
Explore and protect
” Despite their enormous importance as community engineers and as support for the fascinating marine life of the Galapagos Islands, the macroalgae of this area have been commonly overlooked amongst the marine ecosystems of the archipelago”, states Altamirano. “This discovery provides the opportunity to highlight its significance as environment for other species and their role in carbon sequestration within deep-sea locations”.
The researchers conclude that knowing that there are entire marine forests bristling with life that we were unaware of at just 50 m depth, acts as a tip of how much remains to be explored, discovered, learned, and secured.
Recommendation: “Novel mesophotic kelp forests in the Galápagos archipelago” by Salome Buglass, Hiroshi Kawai, Takeaki Hanyuda, Euan Harvey, Simon Donner, Julio De la Rosa, Inti Keith, Jorge Rafael Bermúdez and María Altamirano, 23 November 2022, Marine Biology.DOI: 10.1007/ s00227-022-04142-8.