Spatial and temporal variability of kelp forest canopies in central California

Remote monitoring of giant kelp biomass and physiological condition: An evaluation of the potential for the Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI) mission

“…North, James, and Jones (1993) used a 25-year time series to study how maximum annual canopy extent was affected by climate oscillations, storms, and human impacts, such as waste-water discharge. The spatial variability of the effect of wave disturbance on kelp, and the spatial and temporal dynamics of canopy coverage around the Monterey Peninsula were assessed using aerial photographs (Donnellan, 2004;Graham et al, 1997). Data from aerial surveys were used to study the drivers of the spatial persistence of giant kelp in order to evaluate an existing network of marine protected areas around Catalina Island, CA (Bushing, 1997).…”

Nutrient availability and senescence spatially structure the dynamics of a foundation species

“…Previous studies of giant kelp canopy dynamics have reported increasing stochasticity at scales less than ∼1 km, indicating that other ecological phenomena, such as mortality, dispersal, or recruitment, may be responsible for local abundance patterns (49). Cavanaugh et al (25) described an exponential decrease in southern California kelp population synchrony within distances of 200 m that corresponded to the spatial patterns of recruitment.…”

“…Previous studies of giant kelp canopy dynamics have reported increasing stochasticity at scales less than ∼1 km, indicating that other ecological phenomena, such as mortality, dispersal, or recruitment, may be responsible for local abundance patterns ( 49 ). Cavanaugh et al.…”

Linking human activity and ecosystem condition to inform marine ecosystem based management

“…A dataset of temporal persistence of kelp canopy cover for these same eight sites was also used. Information was derived from 36 aerial surveys of the region conducted monthly from 1985 to 1989 (Donnellan, ). Compared with the PISCO yearly surveys of kelp densities, this dataset tracked kelp forest dynamics with greater frequency, thereby providing higher‐resolution measurements of temporal variation in kelp densities and cover.…”