Earlier this week, a scientist in the San Juan Islands tweeted: “Best day ever."

What triggered her joy?

Sea stars. Hundreds of healthy, colorful sea stars.

A few years ago, a mysterious disease started killing multiple species of sea stars along the West Coast at devastating rates.

This was concerning to scientists because sea stars are voracious predators — they are able to control populations of other sea creatures like mussels, clams and urchins.

But some sea stars in the Pacific Northwest appear to be recovering."

Kate Walters reports for KUOW April 26, 2019. [2]