Nathalie Oulhen, Maria Byrne, Paige Duffin, Marta Gomez-Chiarri, Ian Hewson, Jason Hodin, Brenda Konar, Erin K Lipp, Benjamin G Miner, Alisa L Newton, Lauren M Schiebelhut, Roxanna Smolowitz, Sarah J Wahltinez, Gary M Wessel, Thierry M Work, Hossam A Zaki, John P Wares
AbstractSea star wasting-marked in a variety of sea star species as varying degrees of skin lesions followed by disintegration-recently caused one of the largest marine die-offs ever recorded on the west coast of North America, killing billions of sea stars. Despite the important ramifications this mortality had for coastal benthic ecosystems, such as increased abundance of prey, little is known about the causes of the disease or the mechanisms of its progression. Although there have been studies indicating a range of causal mechanisms, including viruses and environmental effects, the broad spatial and depth range of affected populations leaves many questions remaining about either infectious or non-infectious mechanisms...
August 2022: Biological Bulletin