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Sci Adv
2019 Jan 30;51:eaau7042. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aau7042.
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Disease epidemic and a marine heat wave are associated with the continental-scale collapse of a pivotal predator (Pycnopodia helianthoides).
Harvell CD
,
Montecino-Latorre D
,
Caldwell JM
,
Burt JM
,
Bosley K
,
Keller A
,
Heron SF
,
Salomon AK
,
Lee L
,
Pontier O
,
Pattengill-Semmens C
,
Gaydos JK
.
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Multihost infectious disease outbreaks have endangered wildlife, causing extinction of frogs and endemic birds, and widespread declines of bats, corals, and abalone. Since 2013, a sea star wasting disease has affected >20 sea star species from Mexico to Alaska. The common, predatory sunflower star (Pycnopodia helianthoides), shown to be highly susceptible to sea star wasting disease, has been extirpated across most of its range. Diver surveys conducted in shallow nearshore waters (n = 10,956; 2006-2017) from California to Alaska and deep offshore (55 to 1280 m) trawl surveys from California to Washington (n = 8968; 2004-2016) reveal 80 to 100% declines across a ~3000-km range. Furthermore, timing of peak declines in nearshore waters coincided with anomalously warm sea surface temperatures. The rapid, widespread decline of this pivotal subtidal predator threatens its persistence and may have large ecosystem-level consequences.
Fig. 1. Continental collapse of a pivotal predator: Deep offshore surveys.Mean biomass of sunflower star in 8968 deep offshore trawls (55 to 1280 m) from (A) Washington, (B) Oregon, and (C) California from 2004 to 2016 with 95% confidence interval in light blue. Gray line marks the year 2013 for comparison of SSWD initiation across regions. Yellow circles depict the 2013–2016 trawl locations. The trawls per jurisdiction per year are shown in the top of each plot.
Fig. 2. Continental collapse of a pivotal predator: Shallow nearshore surveys.(A to D) Percentage of shallow nearshore ACs of sunflower star (P. helianthoides) reported in roving-diver surveys from southern California to southern British Columbia, Canada, from 2006 to 2017 (blue scale bars, right axis). Black line, annual abundance score (left axis); red line, annual mean of the maximum temperature anomaly 60 days before each survey (whiskers, 95% confidence interval; left axis). (A) British Columbia. (B) Washington. (C) Oregon. (D) California. (E) Mean biomass (kg/10 m2) in belt transect surveys in central British Columbia, with 95% confidence interval in light blue. Yellow circles depict the 2013–2017 locations. The red rectangle depicts the area where the belt transect surveys were conducted. The surveys per jurisdiction per year are shown in the top of each plot. For other details, see Fig. 1.
Fig. 3. Ocean temperature anomaly averaged over the roving-diver survey locations for the three initial years of the epidemic.Blue, 2013; green, 2014; red, 2015. BC, British Columbia; WA, Washington; OR, Oregon; CA, California.
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