Pesky Starfish Stage Disappearing Act
- Share via
SYDNEY, Australia — Millions of Crown of Thorn starfish that threatened to destroy the Australian Great Barrier Reef are disappearing--and no one is quite sure why.
“The whole thing is a damn mystery. We still don’t know where they (the starfish) come from, where they go and why they die,” a spokesman for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority said Friday.
A recent survey carried out by the authority found only two live starfish in a 250-mile section of the reef and many reefs were showing considerable regrowth.
About half the 45 reefs surveyed had been badly damaged by the starfish in the 1980s with one reef home to an estimated 1.5 million starfish.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
