Scientists Zero-In on What's Causing West Coast Starfish Die-Offs KCTS 9
go to original June 30, 2014

Starfish are dying by the millions, leading scientists to warn of the possibility of localized extinction of some species. As the disease spreads, researchers may be zeroing in on a link between warming waters and the rising starfish body count. (KCTS 9)

ORCAS ISLAND, Wash. - Drew Harvell peers into the nooks and crannies along the rocky shoreline of Eastsound on Orcas Island. Purple and orange starfish clutch the rocks, as if hanging on for dear life.

In fact, they are.

"It's a lot worse than it was last week," says Harvell, a marine epidemiologist at Cornell University. She's been leading nationwide efforts to understand what is causing starfish to die by the millions up and down North America's Pacific shores and on the east coast as well. It's been called sea star wasting syndrome because of how quickly the stars become sick and deteriorate.

"It's the largest mortality event for marine diseases we've seen," Harvell said. "It affects over twenty species on our coast and it's been causing catastrophic mortality."

Read the full story at KCTS 9

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