December 10, 2020, 9 a.m. Pacific Time
SAN FRANCISCO – A groundbreaking study from Oregon State University, The Nature Conservancy and over 60 partner institutions led the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to list the sunflower sea star (Pycnopodia helianthoides) as Critically Endangered today. The designation comes following a marine wildlife epidemic that decimated the animal’s global population and indicates that the sunflower sea star, which plays an important role in maintaining the West Coast’s rapidly vanishing kelp forests, is one step away from extinction.
Populations of the sunflower sea star (Pycnopodia helianthoides), an animal once abundant throughout its range in marine waters from Alaska to Baja California, Mexico, experienced dramatic crashes in response to a marine wildlife epidemic event – referred to as sea star wasting syndrome – that began in 2013. Using over 61,000 surveys from 31 datasets, The Nature Conservancy and expert ecologists at Oregon State University calculated a 90.6% decline in the global population of sunflower sea stars due to the outbreak and estimated that as many as 5.75 billion animals died from the disease. Their analysis – a collaborative and international undertaking with over 60 partner institutions spanning the entire west coast of North America, from Alaska to Baja California – shows no signs of population recovery in any region in the 5-7 years since the outbreak began.
“The rapid decline of this giant sea star, and of the sea kelp forests that it helps preserve, highlights the importance of every single species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM. Its entry into the IUCN Red List in the highest threatened category emphasizes the need for urgent action to understand and combat the wasting disease that is sweeping through the population. We hope that this listing leads to positive action and recovery for this species and its ecosystem,” said Caroline Pollock, Program Officer for the IUCN Red List Unit.
Sunflower sea stars are now nearly absent in the contiguous United States and Mexico. No stars have been observed in Mexico since 2016, none in California since 2018, and only a handful in the outer coasts of Oregon and Washington since 2018. They are still present in Puget Sound, British Columbia, and Alaska, but only at a fraction of their former population in most places.
“These sea stars used to be easy to find, and they were a hit with students and SCUBA divers because they are unforgettable. They can be as big as a trash bin lid with twenty slimy arms covered in suction cups. Unfortunately, your chances of finding one now are next to nothing in most of the contiguous U.S,” said Dr. Sarah Gravem, Research Associate at Oregon State University and lead author on the study that prompted to the sunflower sea star’s Critically Endangered status update. “I don’t think they’re coming back without our help.”
VIDEO: Sunflower Sea Stars Now Critically Endangered (credit: Hakai)
Sunflower sea stars are an important predator of sea urchins and, with the significant loss of these sea stars and other predators throughout their range, purple urchin populations have now exploded in many regions. This overabundance of urchin is linked to a significant decline in kelp forests in multiple regions in recent years. Kelp forests are already facing increased pressure from marine heatwave events and, taken together, these threats contribute to an uncertain future for kelp forest ecosystems which provide critical habitat for thousands of marine animals and support coastal economies.
Because there is little chance of recovery in the contiguous United States without intervention, The Nature Conservancy and partners are preparing for the many steps necessary for the recovery of this species. “This IUCN listing was the first step in our roadmap to recovery,” said Dr. Walter Heady, Senior Scientist at The Nature Conservancy. As a key element of this plan, The Nature Conservancy in partnership with the University of Washington and others are spearheading the first captive breeding of the species and the potential for a pathway to re-introduction if that is determined needed and appropriate.
“While many of us were concerned about local extinction of the sunflower sea star, results of this study highlight the truly devastating extent of loss of this important marine species. This work provides the foundation for conservation of the species. We are coupling knowledge and momentum gained from this study and listing to inform the roadmap needed to recover sunflower sea star populations,” Dr. Heady concluded.
“Because most people aren’t out in the ocean every day, we don’t realize how much it’s being changed and impacted by humans. We need to think creatively about how to keep our oceans healthy. While drawing down carbon emissions is the most pressing need, rebuilding key predator populations, like the sunflower sea star, can be an important piece of the puzzle too,” said Sara Hamilton, PhD Candidate at Oregon State University and seminal author on the study.
“It is incredibly difficult to wrap one’s mind around the tremendous scale of loss this IUCN Red List update exposes. This marine wildlife epidemic is responsible for the death of over 5.7 billion animals–that’s the equivalent of every single smartphone on the planet disappearing 2x over. We now have a species on the brink of extinction and it’s time to take action,” said Vienna Saccomanno, Ocean Scientist at The Nature Conservancy and a co-author on the study.
“The sunflower star was the most susceptible of the twenty starfish species affected by a multi-host pathogen and has rapidly gone from being the most common subtidal starfish on the US west coast to critically endangered. This highlights the impacts disease can have on stability of our nearshore ecosystems,” said Dr. Drew Harvell Professor of Marine Ecology at Cornell University.
“This is an excellent example of collaboration between researchers in Canada, USA and Mexico to understand how Marine Pandemic Events can have drastic effects in our shared ecosystems,” said Dr. Rodrigo Beas, professor at UABC in Baja California, Mexico. “Oceans don’t have borders, science shouldn’t either,” said Beas. “This may not sound like good news, but there are hopeful elements to this story. We successfully integrated information from the entire west coast of North America that spanned years and oceans with multiple partners and used it to gain insights into the population threats for a key species, the sunflower star. That is very hopeful. And we hope this effort will help us adapt to future events,” concluded Beas.
“Inclusion in the IUCN Red List of Threatened species highlights the broad-scale loss of billions of sunflower sea stars. The report demonstrated to us the uniqueness of the few remnant populations that have been found in British Columbia. Research to find where these sunflower stars still exist and why is urgently needed to support future prospects for recovery” said Dr. Alyssa-Lois Gehman, Postdoctoral fellow at the Hakai Institute and the University of British Columbia.
“The speed and scale of this widespread sea star die-off was absolutely perplexing. We saw these rapid changes ourselves while working underwater and immediately felt powerless to help. Then the cascading events seen throughout the range of the missing sunflower sea star had revealed their fundamental role in the nearshore ecosystem. This IUCN listing process has identified key knowledge gaps and research goals for the sunflower sea star that can be applied to conservation and restoration actions,”said Taylor Frierson, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.
About The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. Working in 79 countries and territories, we use a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit www.nature.org or follow @nature_press on Twitter.
About The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ (or The IUCN Red List) is an invaluable resource to guide conservation action and policy decisions. It is a health check for our planet – a Barometer of Life. It is the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of plant, animal and fungus species. It is based on an objective system for assessing the risk of extinction of a species should no conservation action be taken.
Species are assigned to one of eight categories of threat based on whether they meet criteria linked to population trend, population size and structure and geographic range. Species listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable are collectively described as ‘threatened’.
The IUCN Red List is not just a register of names and associated threat categories. It is a rich compendium of information on the threats to the species, their ecological requirements, where they live, and information on conservation actions that can be used to reduce or prevent extinctions. When an animal, fungus or plant changes Red List Category for genuine reasons, this reflects a change in the extinction risk for that species. It is therefore a key indicator for tracking conservation successes and failures.The IUCN Red List is a joint effort between IUCN and its Species Survival Commission, working with its IUCN Red List partners –ABQ BioPark; Arizona State University; BirdLife International; Botanic Gardens Conservation International; Conservation International; Global Wildlife Conservation, Missouri Botanical Garden, NatureServe; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Sapienza University of Rome; Texas A&M University; and Zoological Society of London. This work has been made possible with the essential contribution of the Red List Partners. www.iucnredlist.org