Scientists in California are making a concerted effort to bring back a giant, endangered starfish species that could hold the key to replenishing the West Coast's depleted kelp populations, according to a report at Phys.org.
The sunflower sea star — a huge starfish that can grow up to three feet across with as many as 24 arms — was nearly wiped out on the California coastline by a mysterious disease in 2013. In 2020, it was deemed critically endangered.
The impacts of its loss were felt immediately. Without the sea stars controlling sea urchin populations, the urchins spread out of control and ate way too much kelp, which many other species rely on for food.
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Now, biologist Riah Evin of the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and others have developed a new strategy for restoring sea star populations: growing them in a lab. To date, Evin has raised 137 sunflower stars and counting.
By studying the sea stars in captivity from birth onwards, Evin and other biologists hope to learn how to better conserve them in the wild and use that knowledge to help restore crucial kelp forests. Many of the unanswered questions surround the mysterious disease that has killed around six billion of them since 2013.
"There's a lot of promise in where the research will head," said Andrew Kim, a research scientist at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories on Monterey Bay. "I'm very hopeful."
Other scientists also lauded the efforts of Evin, who is planning to display some of her homegrown sea stars in aquariums, increasing public awareness and opportunities for more funding and research.
"Zoos and aquariums are living arks," said Ashley Kidd, a project manager with the Sunflower Star Lab in Moss Landing. "It is tragic in a way, but very useful if you can use it in time."
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