South Western Australia is a meeting place
of pristine rocky shoreline and productive
cool water kelp forests.
For centuries biologically rich reefs have
flourished but recent ocean warming has catapulted
kelp forests into a broad scale collapse.
Before the 2011 marine heatwave kelp forests
covered more than 70% of shallow rocky reefs
in the area.
But in the past few years we witnessed a transformation
of the reefy.
Kelp forests collapse due to the extreme temperatures
during the extreme heatwave and this loss
of kelp forests enable tropical fishes to
increase in abundance.
these fishes are now grazing and maintaining
this new ecosystem state.
The transformation of kelp forests in Western
Australia is a strong warning for how climate
driven disturbances can tip the balance for
temperate marine ecosystems worldwide.
