One of the most talked about issues in the Puget Sound, and along all of the West Coast, is the phenomenon of sea star wasting disease. The current die off of sea stars was first recorded in 2013, and by the end of 2014 an estimated 80% of purple sea stars had died along the Oregon coast and into Washington. The actual cause of the disease is still largely speculation; However, the two likely causes are a sea star related densovirus and/or the warming ocean temperatures around the globe. Sea star wasting disease takes hold of it’s host and moves rapidly. The disease begins by causing lesions and tissue decay of the sea star’s ectoderm. This eventually leads the arms separating from the main body of the sea star. This process can takes only a few days to occur, meaning that the number of sea stars rapidly decrease when exposed to it.

It should be noted that similar die offs have occurred in the past. Though none of them were as lethal as this one has been, This shows that there is potential for the sea stars to make a rapid comeback. Furthermore, In the past few years there has been a notable amount of juvenile sea stars appearing which is a good sign for the future.

For more information about sea star wasting disease you can visit these links:

https://marine.ucsc.edu/data-products/sea-star-wasting/
https://www.oregonocean.info/index.php/sea-star-wasting-disease