Kelp Crab Research Paper

Monterey Bay is one of the most well known ecosystems in the United States here's a little about it. Monterey bay is home to 525 species of fish, 180 types of seabirds and shorebirds, and Monterey bay has a abundant amount of invertebrates and algae. Monterey bay also has a beautiful environment. Including the sandy dunes, rocky cliffs, rolling hills, steep mountains, and kelp forests. The total length of Monterey bay is over 5360 miles across. In that 5360 miles is the nation's largest kelp forest and canyons. One of the many organisms that live in the kelp forest is the Foliate Kelp Crab.

On the left is one of many organisms in the kelp forest the Foliate Kelp crab. Kelp crabs originated from Animalia, on the kelp crabs back shell it is colored chestnut brown. The stomach of the Foliate Kelp crab is red they often use these colors as camouflage by attaching kelp to their backs. Kelp crabs are also known to grow from four to six inches long. The main food of the Kelp crab is kelp that's one of the reasons it's called the kelp crab. Kelp crabs also have many predators to such as octopuses, giant Kelp
Causing its predators to be able to eat them because they can swim higher up in the water. The amount of rain also makes the water cooler because then the bottom doesn't get enough sunlight. The water temperature also affects the Giant kelp fish because when the water gets warmer the giant kelp fish die off which causes the crab population to go up but the kelp population to go down also. When it gets warmer the water gets warmer and then the glaciers melt causing the water in Monterey bay to also increase. When monterey bay gets cold in December, January, February, and into early march the water doesn't freeze over so nothing major happens except the fish population goes down a little bit. Climate isn't the only thing affecting monterey bay humans also have their