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FRIDAYEXTRA ! The Daily Astorian Friday, January 23, 2015 Weekend Edition SEA STARS MAKE A COMEBACK Wasting epidemic appears to be over at Haystack Rock By ERICK BENGEL EO Media Group Photo courtesy of Susan Glarum Becca Cudmore, a Brooklyn-based science writer, who is wear- ing a black jacket, takes notes during HRAP’s October sea star survey. Nadine Nordquist, center, an HRAP staff interpreter, and Alix Lee, the program’s 2014 intern, gather information to send to the Multi-Agency Rocky Intertidal Network. CANNON BEACH — The worst of the sea star wasting disease epidemic that decimated sea star populations along the West Coast during the past 19 months appears to be over at Haystack Rock — at least for now. Most of what’s left are the juvenile sea stars that somehow survived the pathogenic onslaught that killed off more than 90 percent of their fellows during the 2014 beach season, ac- cording to Haystack Rock Awareness Coordinator Samantha Ferber, who recorded the death toll at three sites. “Now that we’re past the peak of the disease, we’re starting to see that, across the board, sea stars don’t have as severe symptoms,” Ferber said. However, this may be because the sea stars that did show the most severe symptoms have all died, she noted. A fall survey that Ferber con- ducted with HRAP volunteers at and around Haystack Rock found that younger, smaller sea stars tended to fare better than older, larger ones. • Of nine recorded ochre sea stars on Haystack Rock’s south wall, the only three that showed wasting signs had a radius (measured from the middle of their body to the tip of their longest limb) larger than 40 millimeters. • Of 21 recorded ochre sea stars on the east boulder at the Needles, 14 showed wasting signs; the three sea stars with a radius smaller than 40 millimeters showed no signs. (While these numbers demonstrate that not all larger sea stars became infected, they add evidence to the claim that the smaller ones tended not to become infected.) • Of 24 recorded ochre sea stars RQWKHQRUWKERXOGHUVWKHRQO\¿YH that showed wasting signs were larger than 40 millimeters. Though Ferber and her team looked at all of the sea star species at Haystack Rock, they were only DEOHWR¿QGRFKUHVDQGVL[UD\HGVHD stars. Since the disease hit the rock last spring, “We have not seen a sin- JOH VXQÀRZHU VHD VWDU´ D VSHFLHV that used to be seen in the tide pools during lower tides, she said. Ferber sends the results of these Photo courtesy of Haystack Rock Awareness Program The white goo on the severed end of a dead sea star’s limbs told Hay- stack Rock Awareness Program Coordinator Samantha Ferber that the limb loss was the result of the wasting disease, not predation. Photo courtesy of HRAP This photo of a dying sea star, tak- en in May at Haystack Rock, shows the organism at roughly Stage 3 as it disintegrates into a white mush. By July, more than 90 percent of the sea stars at the rock had suc- cumbed to the wasting disease. quarterly surveys to MARINe (Multi-Agency Rocky Intertidal Network), a consortium of univer- sities and government agencies that monitors the ecology of rocky inter- tidal areas along the West Coast. ‘Falling apart’ Before the wasting disease ar- rived in Cannon Beach last spring, it had already wiped out millions of sea stars at several sites along the West Coast, from Alaska to South- ern California. Wasting events have happened before, but “we’ve never seen the disease arrive at the levels that we’ve seen over the past year, year and a half,” said Melissa Miner, a research associate at the Universi- ty of California, Santa Cruz, who works with MARINe. The disease begins as lesions on a sea star’s body that degrade its WLVVXHVKULYHOXSLWVUD\VDQG¿QDO ly dissolve the invertebrate into a pale goo. It usually kills the organ- ism within a few days to a couple of weeks, though some sea stars may slough off infected rays before the lesions reach their vital organs and later regenerate them. )HUEHU¿UVWQRWLFHGWKHGLVHDVHDW Haystack Rock last March. By the end of July, most of the sea stars in the rock’s intertidal zone had died. “Sea stars were falling apart,” she said. “We could see that sea stars were dying right in front of us.” However, “that’s not happening anymore,” she said. Comebacks HRAP and MARINe are focus- ing on the number of new sea stars in a given sea star population and what species are thriving in the af- termath of the wasting. ,Q UHFHQW PRQWKV VL[UD\HG VHD stars have proliferated at the Nee- dles near Haystack Rock, despite that very few were recorded during HRAP’s July survey. See SEA STARS, Page 4C 3XI¿Q:LQHVJDWKHUVSODWLQXPJROGPHGDOV 2010 pinot noir — to the Plati- num Wine Judging competition held in Kennewick, C A N N O N Wash. BEACH — Most of It’s truly an honor you know by now to participate in this that in addition to particular compe- owning The Wine tition. Here’s why: Shack, Maryann and With most wine , DOVR RZQ 3XI¿Q competitions, you Wines. When we decide whether your bought them both wine is a participant from Dean Reiman by paying an entry in 2012, we gave him fee, sending your Steven our sincere promise wine in and crossing Sinkler to take good care of \RXU ¿QJHUV +RZ 3XI¿Q:LQHVDQGGRRXUEHVWWR ever, to get into the Platinum grow the wine brand he created. Wine Judging, your wine must Recently, we were invited to be invited. And to be invited, VXEPLWWZRRIRXU3XI¿Q:LQHV the wine must have won a gold — our 2013 pinot gris and our medal at a competition in Ore- BY STEVEN SINKLER For The Daily Astorian Additionally, when all of the judges gave the wine a plati- num medal, the wine received a “double platinum” award. Likewise, a “double gold” med- al would also be awarded if all the judges gave a gold medal to a wine. As Christmas drew near, I began to anticipate the an- nouncement of the results. The competition is stiff, and the MXGJHV DUH H[FHSWLRQDO , WKLQN ERWWOHLQWRWKHVKLSSLQJER[DQG IURPWKH3DFL¿F1RUWKZHVWZHUH WKH 3XI¿Q :LQHV DUH H[FHOOHQW wished them good luck. I know tasted and evaluated by a panel but how would they stand up that it’s kinda weird to talk to RIQLQHKLJKO\H[SHULHQFHGMXGJ DJDLQVWWKH¿QHVWZLQHVWKURXJK bottles of wine, but I tend to do es. Based on their evaluation, RXWWKHHQWLUH3DFL¿F1RUWKZHVW" this more often than you’d think. the judges could award a wine Let’s just say that I was a little Fortunately, they haven’t talked with one of three designations: a QHUYRXVZKHQ,¿QDOO\UHFHLYHG back to me yet. platinum medal, a gold medal or See MEDALS, Page 4C 2YHURIWKH¿QHVWZLQHV no medal. in the gon, Washington, Idaho or Brit- ish Columbia during the year. From this initial list, the judges then select the wines they invite to compete. We were elat- ed to receive an invitation. As I packed up the wines for the event, I put each precious Wine Cellar ts Presen Live at the Liberty Theater, Astoria Tickets $15 - $20 - $25 at the Liberty Box office & www.TicketsWest.com/ March 6 7:30 pm His only Oregon performance!