Cover Image: Researcher Gonzalo Bravo working on photo-quadrats in Argentina’s kelp forest. Image: Mariano Rodriguez. The Mission Blue Kelp
@hope-for-the-planet posted a few days ago here about solving the mysteries of sea star deaths,
One of the quotes in the post that hit home for me:
"Sunflower sea stars are one of the hardest hit species, with 87% of the population wiped out in some areas and total extinction in others. Sea star die offs are particularly bad, because they prevent sea urchin populations from getting out of control. Sea urchins feed on the kelp that forms the basis of the whole ecosystem, so without sea stars the kelp forests take a big hit."
Later in the week I attended this webinar hosted by Mission Blue highlighting kelp forest awareness. As I've said, I'm new to this space and I'm digesting all the bits and pieces that make me cock my head to one side. Not my area of expertise but my interest was piqued and beyond learning that there are over 100 kelp species in the world, I did not realize just how crucial kelp forests are for biodiversity, carbon storage, and coastal protection.
Learning about the cascading effects of species loss has really driven home how interconnected ocean ecosystems truly are, especially with both of these sources coming in the same week and reinforcing each other’s insights.
I love this quote that panelist Loyiso Dunga gave us from Baba Dioum, a renown Senegalese environmentalist:
“In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.”
― Baba Dioum
