Overpopulation Among Starfish – Not A Pretty Picture

Experts at Canada’s Vancouver Aquarium say they are puzzled by what is causing thousands of sunflower starfish, or sea stars, to die in the waters of Vancouver Harbor and Howe Sound.

What is even more startling is the way the creatures perish — by quickly dissolving in a phenomenon the aquarium has dubbed Sea Star Wasting Syndrome.

“They have disintegrated, and now there is just goo left,” says research diver and taxonomist Donna Gibbs.

Earthweek

Alan Weisman in his new book Countdown, doesn’t imagine the human species turning to goo, though there are certainly problems ahead if we don’t get a handle on our surging populations, lagging resources….