Restoring kelp forests at Telegrafbukta. Step 1: mapping the site.

While continuing our restoration efforts at Sørsjetéen in Tromsø’s city center, we have begun restoring kelp forests in Telegrafbukta, at the southern tip of Tromsø Island. The first step was to map the site, laying the groundwork for the upcoming work with the Kelpers — the Rissa volunteers helping restoring kelp forests — in collaboration with research parthers at the Tromsø University Museum.

A high potential for kelp restoration

Last February, Rissa organized an event with freedivers and scuba divers to evaluate the site's potential for kelp forest restoration. Amy, Ann, Beata, Delphin, Jamie, Jacqueline, Linda, Linn, Maria, Michael, Pauline and Saga contributed to the effort in various ways.

Around the wooden pier and in several other areas, sand was the dominant substrate. Since kelp requires hard surfaces to anchor and grow, these sandy areas offer limited restoration potential. However, we also identified more promising grounds: as shown in two of our Instagram reels, the seabed in some spots consists of loose rocks or a large granite slab. We decided to return later to map the granite slab in more detail and, based on the findings, determine whether this could become our next restoration site.

Two Kelpers after the scouting trip in Bukta in February 2025.

Mapping the seabed

Although several of the Kelpers are experienced field biologists, none of us had ever mapped a seabed before. We chose what seemed the most practical and accurate method: we activated the GPS on a phone, sealed it in a dry bag, and recorded our track while swimming along the edge of the large granite slab. Shortly after the dive, Jamie offered to analyze the data and produced the map below. Thank you Jamie!

Since the large slab is bordered by loose rocks and gravel, it will be easy for the Kelpers to visualize the restoration area while underwater. Another advantage is that we can always expand the restoration area later if needed.

Map of the Telegrafbukta kelp forest restoration site (a) and in relation to Tromsøya (b) (by Jamie, April 2025)

An island of hope

In April, professional photographer Ann Cools joined several events to document the two sites in Tromsø where Rissa Citizen Science is leading kelp forest restoration efforts. While capturing stunning images, she also made an exciting discovery at Telegrafbukta: a small underwater “island” of seaweed that had somehow escaped the intense grazing pressure of sea urchins. Located at the shallowest point in the area, where sea urchins are more vulnerable to seagull predation, this surviving patch of seaweed offers a message of hope. It provides a glimpse of what the entire site could look like once the Kelpers succeed in reducing urchin density to a sustainable level.

The underwater seaweed island in Telegrafbukta (photos: Ann Cools)