Restoring kelp forests at Telegrafbukta. Step 2: measuring urchin density.

Delphin Ruché
May 19
2 min read

Updated: May 21

Together with a team of committed volunteers, we conducted a survey of the site to measure sea urchin density and record the presence of other marine life. This initial assessment will provide valuable insight into the current state of the ecosystem and serve as a baseline for the upcoming restoration work.

A volunteer documenting urchin density in Telegrafbukta, Tromsø for Rissa Citizen Science

Rissa's Kelper sampling biodiversity on the Telegrafbukta urchin barren

We kicked off May 17th – Norway’s Constitution Day – with a citizen science session followed by warm waffles. Not a bad way to celebrate! Adison, Amy, Delphin, Florentine, Gosia and Martha gathered with one straightforward mission: to take photographs of the 50x50 cm frame that will later help us assess sea urchin density and overall biodiversity. These images capture the starting point, before we begin restoring the kelp forest.

This is what the site looks like at the moment:

Open-access image database

In collaboration with our research partner Dr. Andreas Altenburger at the Arctic University of Norway (UiT), an open-access database was set up to store all the photos collected during the events. These valuable images will be analyzed later on. We still need to resolve a few camera issues to correct distortion, but we’re working on it!

screenshot of the image bank used for the kelp restoration project in Telegrafbukta

Screenshot of the open-access database managed with our research partner at UiT.

The study site

The kelp restoration site spans 2,055 square meters and is marked by four red buoys. Visible from shore, these buoys are a crucial reference point for the "Kelpers"—the volunteers who freedive or scuba dive to carry out citizen science and restoration efforts. Especially on days with waves or currents, the buoys make their work much more manageable.

The kelp forest restoration site in Telegrafbukta (by Jamie Hollander, April 2025).

Join the adventure, be part of the story!

Everyone is welcome to join the next events. Help is always welcome from land and in the water. You can also just stop briefly to meet with the volunteers: you will be greeted with warm vibes, smiles, waffles and tea, at the minimum.

The next months are going to be busy for the Kelpers!

First, we need to identify additional sites with similar conditions to the one we’ve already mapped. Our goal is to include one more treatment site and ideally two control sites for comparison.
Next, we’ll begin reducing the sea urchin density, starting from the buoy closest to shore. Throughout the process, we’ll record the number of participants—both on land and in the water—the time divers spend underwater, and the number of urchins they remove.
At the same time, we’ll continue monitoring changes in urchin density and overall biodiversity by photographing the sampling frame and collecting material for our research partner. We don’t expect seaweed to rebound as dramatically in summer as it would in spring, but this is still new territory for us—so we’re excited to see what unfolds!