Sunflower Sea Star Recovery Webinar

Sunflower Sea Star.\Photo courtesy of Oregon State University.

On Wednesday, Sep. 20, at 6:00 p.m., the Elakha Alliance will host a webinar on the recovery of sunflower sea stars. The Elakha Alliance is a nonprofit working to restore Oregon's historic sea otter population, thereby making Oregon’s marine and coastal ecosystem more robust and resilient. Like the sea otter, the sunflower sea star is a major predator of the purple sea urchin, an important part of maintaining a healthy and balanced kelp forest ecosystem. Ashley Kidd, the conservation aquaculture program manager at the Sunflower Star Laboratory in Monterey, California, will be the featured speaker.

About the talk:

"It was the epidemic no one ever saw. From 2013- 2018, ninety-five percent of sunflower sea stars disappeared off the west coast of North America from a Sea Star Wasting Syndrome. The loss of this keystone predator, disrupted the ecological balance within kelp forests, causing many to shift to urchin barrens. Similar to the southern sea otter, sunflower sea stars are woven into the fabric of the kelp forests. This talk will highlight partners of the Pycnopodia Recovery Working Group, who are working towards a sustainable way to return sunflower sea stars to their native kelp ecosystems."

Visit this link to register for the event.

Oregon Shores is a key partner of the Elakha Alliance, and we are excited to be working with them toward a future of thriving coastal ecosystems and economies.