The Sunflower Star is one of the most voracious sea stars in the world, and also one of the largest. I personally have seen individuals that were almost a metre across. Up until the 2013, the first year people started noting the affects of Sea Star Wasting disease, I would find huge animals dying on docks or on the decks of boats — the result of fishers despising their presence on their crab and prawn traps. Trying to explain that these creatures were absolutely essential to the ecosystem fell on deaf ears. By the summer of 2014 most of these animals were disintegrating before my eyes. If I found a young recruit, I was ecstatic. As I write this in 2019, the situation for this species has not really improved — sea urchins are taking over the ocean floor and kelp beds that were once prolific are dying at alarming rates. Their brilliant colours and voracious appetite are significantly missed. For more information on this species and Sea Star Wasting Disease, see the Sea Stars of the Pacific Northwest.