Museum of Natural History welcomes endangered Sunflower Stars Rosa and Miguel to Sea Center

Rosa and Miguel, a purple pair of 18-legged Sunflower Stars, are the newest residents of the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center on Stearns Wharf. Sunflower Stars are an endangered species, largely absent from the California coasts since the mid-2010s due to a harsh wave of Sea Star Wasting Disease. Missing in action in the wild, urchins, which Sunflower Stars usually eat, have overgrazed kelp beds and thrown the ecosystem out of balance. The Sea Center worked with Sunflower Star Laboratory in Monterey to help restore the stars and rehabilitate kelp forests. “It’s really cool to be working with endangered species,” said Saul Lopez-Villalta, aquarist at the Sea Center. “It’s definitely a nice feeling to replant something in the wild, we can help keep them around for another generation.” The Sunflower Stars live in a large tank in the upstairs section of the Sea Center with the “Dive-In” exhibits. They are new neighbors to Moon Jellyfish, a seahorse, a Californ