The most iconic star in Laguna Beach is not a reality show celebrity. It’s Pisaster ochraceus, the purple sea star.
Unfortunately, the species has not fully recovered from a massive die-off in 2013-2015 that wiped out millions of sea stars from Alaska to Mexico. The scope of the epidemic was staggering, and it’s still impacting some regions. At first scientists thought it was a virus, then maybe some kind of bacterial infection, exacerbated by environmental factors (i.e. warm waters). But they have ruled out the Fukushima nuclear facility disaster in Japan.
Unfortunately, the sea stars are not returning in the numbers that scientists had hoped. Compounding the problem is that the die-off triggered a cascade of other ecosystem changes. For example, the sea urchins that starfish usually eat are proliferating with abandon, according to a recent study. Intertidal and subtidal rocks once covered in sea stars are now covered in mussels and urchins. And in Laguna, urchins eat valuable kelp.
So count your blessings if you do chance upon an orange, yellow, reddish, purple or brown sea star. Who knows when you will see another.
Proceed with caution. It’s important to know the tides and don’t step on marine life. Even things that don’t look alive often are. And for God’s sake don’t take anything home with you except good memories.
