A team of researchers from the non-profit Sunflower Star Laboratory is undertaking efforts to restore the sunflower sea star, a marine invertebrate, off the coast of Monterey, California. These stars, which can have up to 24 arms, are being placed in specialized cages on the ocean floor as part of a mission to encourage them to roam the seabed.
The initiative aims to address the significant decline of kelp forests along the Pacific coast, with 95% disappearing over the past decade. This decimation followed a marine heatwave around 2013, which accelerated a disease that eliminated over 90% of the Pacific's sunflower sea star population.
Sunflower sea stars are crucial predators of purple sea urchins. With the stars largely gone, the urchin population increased, leading them to consume kelp and reduce vast underwater forests to barren areas. Researchers hope to re-establish a "halo of fear" where the scent of a sunflower star deters urchins, allowing kelp to recover.
The laboratory is also pioneering marine husbandry techniques to breed new generations of sea stars in controlled tanks, as the wild population in Monterey Bay is currently zero. Field experiments are underway to study the movement of lab-raised stars and the reactions of local urchins, gathering data for future full-scale reintroduction.