A great day for Team Aquatic Virus (aka the Hewson Lab), Ian’s paper is out in PNAS. The disease has been seen in sea-star populations along the Pacific coast from Mexico to Alaska and we have strong evidence to suggest that a densovirus is the culprit. Check out the following links for more information.
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences paper abstract
- Seastar ripper prime suspect pinned down
- Video: Scientists solve mystery of West Coast starfish die-off
Ochre Star affected by sea-star wasting disease (Photo Credit: AP Photo/Oregon State University, Elizabeth Cherny-Chipman)