Anaerobic degradation of kelp in the ocean is poorly understood relative to aerobic degradation. While there have been several studies on aerobic degradation of kelp, there have only been a few long-term studies of anaerobic degradation of kelp. Anaerobic degradation of ocean plan life can be used in industrial applications such as possible creation of fertilizers and biofuels. This project aims to identify bacteria that could be responsible for the anaerobic degradation of kelp. In order to accomplish this goal, the giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera), along with several other species of kelp, were placed in anaerobic serum bottles with in-situ seawater and allowed to incubate in the dark over several weeks. Microbial DNA samples will be extracted weekly for 16s rRNA gene sequencing. Analyzing at different time points will allow us to study the overall change in microbial community over time. Currently, the acquired samples are still incubating, however by the end of the experiment we should see varying degrees of higher amounts of anaerobic bacteria as well as sulfate-reducing microbes.