'Hundreds' of starfish wash up on Queensland beach — here's why
Experts have revealed what they believe is most likely to blame for their presence on the Queensland beach.
A Queensland resident has sparked a discussion after reportedly stumbling across “hundreds of starfish” while walking on a beach.
Leesa Short said she spotted the starfish around 5pm on Easter Sunday near Salmon Creek, about 40km south of Townsville. “When I realised that they were juvenile starfish I checked to see if they were still alive,” she told Yahoo News Australia, adding the “biggest was about five cm in diameter.”
“I checked quite a few of them and they were all still alive. I tried picking some up and putting them into deeper water. Then I realised that the tide was coming in so I thought they would be OK,” Ms Short recalled. “I live nearby and I have never seen anything like it.”
Stunned by her discovery, the local posted photos of the tiny sea creatures nestled in the sand to Facebook on Monday. “I would love to know the significance of this from a marine biologist,” she pondered.
The images have attracted numerous comments, with one woman saying she had “never seen that many on the beach”. “Wow, that’s amazing,” another wrote. “Hopefully the tide picks them back up and takes them home,” someone else wished.
What caused the starfish to wash ashore?
Despite Ms Short's claim, Dr Benjamin Mos, a senior lecturer in aquaculture at the University of Queensland, told Yahoo News Australia that most of the starfish in the photos appeared to be dead.
“Their pale white skeleton appears to be showing,” he said, adding that a “physical disturbance” is most likely to blame for their presence on the shore. “It is possible the starfish were washed off a nearby reef or mudflat following more intense than usual wave or currents.”
Dr Mos said he had personally “seen tens of hundreds of sea urchins” — a close relative of starfish — washed up on NSW beaches after intense storms that bring large waves. “The actions of wind, currents and waves tend to congregate dead/dying animals together onto a particular beach or even one section of the beach,” he said.
Dr Tina Skinner, a postdoctoral research fellow with university’s school of biological sciences, agreed “changes in weather” could be responsible. “Or, if the water temperature drops suddenly, it might be that they stiffen up and can't swim as well,” she told Yahoo News Australia, assuring that the sight isn’t “too much of a cause for concern".
“It doesn't look like there are huge numbers, and starfish strandings are pretty common around the world — the populations bounce back.”
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