Science & Nature
Endangered Sea Stars Make Splashy Debut at Shedd, Where Researchers Are Working to Save the Species From Extinction
(Courtesy of Shedd Aquarium)
A group of microscopic sunflower sea star larva arrived at Shedd Aquarium last year and have been bulking up behind the scenes ever since. Now, after growing 16,000%, they’re ready to make their public debut.
The tiny sea stars — just 2 inches in diameter — may be hard to spot in their habitat at the moment, but they won’t stay that way. The sunflower is one of the largest species of sea stars and can reach up to 3 feet in diameter.
Like a lot of aquatic creatures, sea stars have a certain Zen quality to them. That appearance is deceiving.
“Sunflower sea stars are actually voracious predators,” Rachel Zak, senior aquarist of aquarium sustainability at Shedd, said in a statement.
In the wild, sunflower sea stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) are a keystone species in kelp forests and they primarily prey on urchins, which would otherwise over-graze on kelp. By keeping the urchin population in check, sea stars help maintain ecosystem balance in kelp forests, Zak said.
Which is why it’s concerning to scientists that a mysterious wasting disease has reduced the global population of sunflower sea stars by 90%, to the point the sea stars are now listed as critically endangered.
Shedd is raising the sunflower sea stars as part of a collaborative international program to save the creatures from extinction. The team at Shedd has already collected data about the optimal conditions for rearing larval sea stars and will continue gathering information throughout the sea stars’ ongoing development, information that could prove crucial to the species’ survival.
“We know we have the skills and equipment to raise sea stars and similar species from a microscopic level,” Zak said. “This is just the beginning, and our work is far from over.”
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
