Testing the roles of local adaptation and genetic diversity to improve Giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) restoration

This dataset includes survey and environmental data from a manipulative field experiment testing the roles of local adaptation and genetic diversity in giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) restoration success. Kelp spores were sourced from parent kelp individuals at two sites in Barkley Sound, British Columbia, Canada: Ed King Island (cooler on average) and Dixon Island (warmer on average). Kelp were then outplanted back at the two sites in a reciprocal transplant design. The goal of this experiment was to test whether giant kelp grows better at its home site than at an away site, and whether kelp cultures with a greater number of parents (higher genetic diversity) perform better.

The dataset consists of survival (number gravels with live kelp out of gravels remaining in plot) and growth (total length of the longest kelp on five randomly selected gravels per plot) estimates at four timepoints (April, May, June, August) taken by SCUBA divers. Other environmental data include grazer counts in each plot, substrate composition of each plot, grazer transect surveys at each site, nutrient measurements 1m from surface and 1m from bottom, and temperature and salinity profiles. Some measurements from kelp in the nursery prior to outplanting are also provided.