What’s Happening to all the Starfish?

May 4, 2014

Scientists are making some headway in figuring out what is killing millions of sea stars in the waters off the Pacific coast, from British Columbia to Mexico.

While a definitive answer eludes them, researchers suggest a pathogen — either bacterial or viral — is responsible for the death toll.

"We don't have an absolute answer yet," said Lesanna Lahner, a veterinarian at the Seattle Aquarium, after presenting the latest information at the Salish Sea Ecosystem conference in Seattle last week.

"We've narrowed in on it possibly being a pathogen, some sort of infectious source, bacterial or viral."

The disease was . . .

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