Date of Award

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

College/School

College of Science and Mathematics

Department/Program

Marine Biology and Coastal Sciences

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Colette Feehan

Committee Member

Alexis Khursigara

Committee Member

Carla Narvaez

Abstract

Kelp forests provide a wide range of ecosystem services, but how well these services are represented and supported in the scientific literature remains unclear. This study analyzed peer-reviewed publications on kelp forests in the northeastern United States to evaluate both the frequency and strength of evidence for ecosystem services across four categories: provisioning, regulating, habitat, and cultural. Habitat and regulating services were the most frequently reported, with habitat services also showing the strongest evidentiary support, particularly for habitat creation, life cycle support, and biodiversity. Trophic regulation was similarly well-represented within regulating services. In contrast, provisioning services such as commercial fisheries were frequently mentioned and strongly supported in the literature but weakly supported when studied, while services such as climate regulation and nutrient filtration were often inferred rather than directly measured. Cultural services were rarely reported in scientific literature and showed limited supporting evidence, suggesting possible documentation elsewhere. Overall, these results highlight key knowledge gaps and emphasize the need for studies that directly quantify ecosystem services, rather than relying on inferred ecological processes. A more cohesive approach is needed to fully characterize the scope of kelp forest ecosystem services and to support their integration into management and conservation frameworks under a changing climate.

File Format

PDF

Download

Available for download on Thursday, May 13, 2027

Share

COinS