Billions of sea stars have died. A Northwest tribe is trying to save the species
The Samish Indian Nation is working with researchers to reintroduce endangered sunflower stars into the wild after a wasting disease nearly wiped out the species. Despite environmental challenges and previous setbacks, the team is attempting to restore this keystone species to the San Juan Islands.
Why it matters
The recovery of keystone species is critical for maintaining the health and biodiversity of Pacific marine ecosystems.
On a spring morning so blustery that the National Weather Service issued a small craft advisory, a Samish Indian Nation research boat, called the Chinook (Yómech), set out from Anacortes, Washington, just east of the San Juan Islands.
A team of divers crammed into the cabin as the small craft bounced and slammed across Rosario Strait. They were on their way to pick up precious cargo: 20 endangered sunflower stars, raised by hand in a lab at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.
Sunflower stars are one of the Pacific Ocean's most endangered sea creatures. For the past year, University of Washington researchers have worked closely with the Samish Indian Nation to bring this 24-armed creature back from the brink of extinction after a vast underwater pandemic nearly wiped it out.
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