Visualization of seawater flow around morphologically distinct forms of the giant kelp Macrocystis integrifolia from wave-sheltered and exposed sites

摘要

Our objective was to determine whether blades of macrocystis integrifolia from a wave-sheltered site possess morphological features that "trip" velocity boundary layers (VBL) from laminar to turbulent in conditions of low water motion, compared to blades of M. Integrifolia from wave-sheltered and exposed sites was visualized in a recirculating flow tank in which seawater flow was initially laminar at velocities up to 8 cm s~1.