The biodiversity associated with subtidal Irish kelp forests dominated by Laminaria hyperborea has never been described. To enumerate species assemblages in these ecosystems, subtidal surveys were done throughout the calendar year to investigate species assemblages within kelp forests, composition of benthic communities, species colonizing kelp thalli, recruitment to kelp forests, and habitat recovery processes after canopy clearances. Surveys were further undertaken in maërl beds, sediment-bottom bays, Serpula vermicularis reefs, and bedrock habitats for comparison. Across all four seasons, kelp forests harbor the richest species assemblages, second only S. vermicularis reefs in diversity, with a total of 313 unique species in the habitat (from juvenile recruits to mature macrofauna). Peak diversity in kelp forests occurred in summer and echinoderms were one of the most abundant groups, though urchins never reach densities that would threaten over-grazing. The thalli of L. hyperborea are diverse habitats harboring many deposit feeders, filter feeders, and marine macroalgae. Epibiotic communities become more diverse with age of kelp, culminating in a maximum of 1660 individuals on stipes and 949 on holdfasts. Recruitment of crustaceans, echinoderms, and worms was high in kelp forests, but recruitment of common Irish fish could not be monitored because of unique life history stage. Habitat establishment took over a year on artificial substrata which were colonized by macroalgae and dense canopy cover inhibited growth of juvenile sporophytes. This descriptive study represents an essential baseline for kelp forest biodiversity in Ireland.

中文翻译：

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爱尔兰西部海带海带森林的生态基线

与主导潮下的爱尔兰海藻森林相关的生物多样性北方海带从未被描述。为了枚举这些生态系统中的物种组合，在整个日历年中进行了潮下调查，以调查海带森林内的物种组合、底栖群落的组成、海藻菌体的物种定殖、海藻森林的补充以及树冠清除后的栖息地恢复过程。为进行比较，还对maërl 床、沉积物底部海湾、蠕虫珊瑚礁和基岩栖息地进行了调查。在所有四个季节中，海藻林拥有最丰富的物种组合，仅次于S. vermicularis珊瑚礁的多样性，栖息地共有 313 种独特的物种（从幼年新兵到成熟的大型动物）。海带森林的最高多样性发生在夏季，棘皮动物是最丰富的群体之一，尽管海胆从未达到会威胁过度放牧的密度。L. hyperborea的菌体是多样化的栖息地，拥有许多沉积饲养者、滤食性动物和海洋大型藻类。随着海带年龄的增长，附生生物群落变得更加多样化，最终最多有 1660 只海带和 949 只海带。海带森林中甲壳类动物、棘皮动物和蠕虫的招募率很高，但由于独特的生活史阶段，无法监测普通爱尔兰鱼的招募率。在被大型藻类定殖的人工基质上建立栖息地需要一年多的时间，密集的树冠覆盖抑制了幼年孢子体的生长。这项描述性研究代表了爱尔兰海藻森林生物多样性的基本基线。