feature (id #25):
Giant Kelp Beds (polygons)

category kelp
description Giant Kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) is perennial and beds are generally found in semi-protected areas as well as some semi-exposed areas. It is not found in areas of warm water with low salinity.  This feature includes records previously identified as Macrocystis integrifolia.
atlas page view PDF (1.9 MB)
(This item is not in our 2010 printed atlas.)
metadata view online
feature GIS data download ZIP of shapefiles (1.2 MB)
Marxan metadata view online
Marxan-ready data download ZIP of shapefiles (2.1 MB)

See our Glossary to learn about these terms (metadata, feature GIS data, Marxan-ready data, etc)

2 comments about this feature

  • One reviewer has noted that only one species of Macrocystis (Macrocystis pyrifera) is currently recognized and that what is listed here as Macrocystis integrifolia is indeed Macrocystis pyrifera, the same species shown in the Giant ‘Perennial’ Kelp feature.

comment on this feature

All fields below are required (though your email address will not be published).


for data layer: Merged Kelp Datasets

custodian — Living Oceans Society: Carrie Robb

for data layer: Haida Gwaii Marine Plants

custodian — Parks Canada: Patrick Bartier

for data layer: Pacific Rim Confidence Weighted Abundance Rasters

custodian — Parks Canada: Mike Collyer

for data layer: Kelp Surveys

custodian — Province of British Columbia - Coastal Resource Information Management System (CRIMS): Carol Ogborne: http://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/2d994dbd-0518-4463-ac52-28bd05129371

how to access the restricted data

This feature was created from 4 raw data layers. Each data layer has a custodian and different restrictions as to which types of data BCMCA may distribute on this website. The unrestricted feature and Marxan-ready data are available to download at the map & data tab. To gain access to the restricted data, please go through the following process:

  1. Determine whether you are interested in the feature data or Marxan-ready data. (See the Glossary for descriptions on these data types.)
  2. Using the info below, make a list of the custodians you will need to contact for permission to use the data. Please note that many of the features use similar data layers and require permission from the same custodians. Also note that BCMCA does not supply the contact information for the custodians, but they can be found through web searches. Then contact each of the custodians directly, indicating:
    • which features you are requesting permission to have data for
    • whether you are requesting the feature data or Marxan-ready data
  3. When all of the required permissions have been received for a feature or set of features, please forward the email confirmations to the BCMCA data custodian at info@bcmca.ca to obtain the data.

An index of all the data custodians for ALL features is available here.