Photo @ladzinski / They may not look like it, but #Starfish are voracious #keystonePredators. Hunting primarily barnacle, mussels and crustaceans, the #OchreSeaStar slowly devours it’s victims by climbing on top of it and placing it’s open stomach around its prey. Like any keystone predator, star fish are essential in maintaining balance to an ecosystem, prohibiting an organism to over run an area. In recent years scientists are seeing a significant decline in #OchreSeaStar here in the Pacific Northwest due to “sea star wasting disease”. Decreased PH balance in our oceans has weakened the immune systems of star fish, making them more susceptible to this disease. As numbers decline, the pecking order and balance is slowly changing in the tide pools. Photographed #onassignment for @natgeo / @arjandekock @ianvaso by natgeo http://ift.tt/1W0EfPg
via Tumblr http://ift.tt/26Iyd9E
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