Giant Kelp

On this trip to Afognak I really wanted to document the bed of Giant Kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) I had noticed near our camp.  Bull kelp is the normal Kodiak kelp and Giant kelp is the stuff you typically find in Southeast Alaska or off the coast of California.  But recently Giant kelp seems to be colonizing the Kodiak Archipelago (click here for older post on subject). The Afognak Island Giant kelp beds may well be the most northern such beds in the world!

Anyway, these photos are all of the Giant Kelp in the bed just south of Lipsett Point.  While kayaking we all loved how the kelp 'killed' the waves.  But the kelp was also so thick it was hard to paddle!

I think the kelp bed by our place has grown rapidly in size the past few years.  I remember just 3 years ago people setting subsistence nets where today the kelp is so thick that setting a net would be impossible.  On our next trip I plan on actually mapping the extent of the kelp.  I also want to keep an eye on how the Giant kelp competes with the more local Bull kelp.  Will Giant kelp replace the local Bull kelp or will they both fill their own niche?

Fun stuff to observe and watch change!
Patrick