Latest news with #AlexRomer
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Starfish killer found in Palm Beach County's Lake Worth Lagoon by University of Florida
Ecologist Alex Romer tugged his snorkel on and slipped into the stillness of Palm Beach County's Lake Worth Lagoon, an estuary of mud and sand, turtles and tidal whims, manatee and mutton snapper, and on that day in July 2024, devastation. Sea stars, also known as starfish, lay in pieces in the murk, arms twisted, white with sores, bodies deflating, disintegrating, vaporizing into the substrate with a shadow of powdery black imprints left behind. At first, the University of Florida researcher thought it was only a few sickened nine-armed sea stars in an area dubbed Lake Worth Cove at John D. MacArthur Beach State Park. But there were dozens, up to 75, with varying degrees of symptoms from what would be determined to be sea star wasting disease, or sea star wasting syndrome. More: Boat restrictions possible near Peanut Island as dredging begins in Lake Worth Lagoon It's believed to be the first documented case of the sea star killer in Florida's coastal waters according to researchers at UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, which published a study this year in the journal Southeastern Naturalist. Romer, who is a quantitative ecologist with UF's Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, was the lead author. 'I had a pretty good idea it was sea star wasting disease,' Romer said. 'They live in the substrate, but they were all out because they were suffering.' Millions of sea star deaths between 2013 and 2015 along the Pacific coast from the Gulf of Alaska to Mexico are blamed on the disease. First thought to be a virus, new evidence points to a syndrome, or group of symptoms that occur together, including a bacterial growth that may be caused by environmental factors such as warmer water temperatures, changes in salinity levels and pollutants. Romer, who said he recognized the disease from learning about it in an advanced placement environmental science class, went back the day after his initial snorkel trip to take photos and collect samples. He gave those to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which then returned them to UF for study. Sea surface temperatures in the Lake Worth Lagoon where the sick sea stars were found were more than 1.8 degrees above average at the time of the event, according to UF. Unusually low tides and stormwater runoff were also observed. 'When nine-armed sea stars forage, they churn the sand for worms and shellfish,' Romer said. 'If their numbers drop, that sediment-mixing slows, giving algae a chance to overgrow meadows. Thinner seagrass means fewer nursery spots for young sportfish.' More: Seagrass is making an epic comeback in the Lake Worth Lagoon - why that's so critical Deborah Drum, director of Palm Beach County's Environmental Resources Management Department, or ERM, said none of her marine scientists have seen signs of sea star wasting disease in the Lake Worth Lagoon and believes what Romer stumbled on was a very localized event. In the past few months, Drum said environmental resource employees have found healthy nine-armed sea stars throughout the northern reaches of the lagoon and in the Munyon Cove area near where Romer was snorkeling. 'As to what can be done (about the disease), it's what ERM strives to do through habitat enhancement and restoration within the Lake Worth Lagoon with the creation of oyster reefs and seagrass and mangrove habitat,' Drum said. The lagoon, once a freshwater lake, became a brackish estuary with the dredging of the Boynton Beach and Lake Worth inlets. Hardening of its sandy coastline with sea walls, as well as regular deluges of stormwater runoff and occasional dumps of Lake Okeechobee water has coated areas of the lagoon in life-choking muck. Palm Beach County has spent millions of dollars to restore the lagoon, including by building islands for mangrove habitats, shorebirds, oyster reefs and sea grass. Romer said he hopes people will report seeing anything unusual in the wild to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 888-404-FWCC (3922) or record what they see on community science platforms such as iNaturalist. 'This isn't my area of expertise, it's not something that I was researching or looking for, but any member of the public can be involved in conservation in the same way I was here,' he said. Kimberly Miller is a journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate, weather, and the environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@ Help support our local journalism, subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: University of Florida finds starfish disease in Palm Beach County
Miami Herald
30-06-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Alarming starfish disease reaches Florida waters
Snorkelers and divers in Palm Beach County were recently stunned by a disturbing sight: starfish, also known as sea stars, with missing limbs, open wounds and bodies disintegrating on the ocean floor. This marks Florida's first confirmed case of Sea Star Wasting Disease (SSWD), a devastating condition that has plagued Pacific Ocean sea star populations for more than a decade. The outbreak was discovered in July 2024 at Lake Worth Cove by Alex Romer, an ecologist with the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) in Fort Lauderdale. While snorkeling recreationally, Romer noticed dozens of nine-armed sea stars with curled limbs, necrotic tissue and rapidly decomposing bodies. 'I'm not a marine biologist. Anyone observant enough while snorkeling could have noticed this,' Romer said. 'I just felt a responsibility to make sure it didn't go unnoticed.' The discovery by UF/IFAS researchers marks the first documented instance of SSWD in the Atlantic Ocean and the first known case in the nine-armed sea star (Luidia senegalensis), a species common along Florida's southeastern coast. 'Documenting when and where diseases impact marine life is a critical first step to understanding their environmental causes and consequences,' said Melissa Miller, a UF/IFAS wildlife ecologist in Fort Lauderdale. While the disease has ravaged sea star populations along the Pacific for years, its spread to the Atlantic signals a troubling ecological shift. Although nine-armed sea stars can regenerate limbs, the extreme tissue decay seen here suggests something far more severe and unnatural. 'This is now the southernmost confirmed case of SSWD in the Atlantic and adds a new species to the list of those affected,' Romer said. 'It raises new concerns about the vulnerability of Florida's marine invertebrates.' Causes remain unclear Lab tests did not detect densovirus, once believed to be a possible cause of SSWD. This supports the theory that environmental stressors may be driving the outbreak—factors such as above-average water temperatures, unusually low tides and polluted runoff altering salinity and water quality. 'If a pathogen is involved, it may be different from those we've seen before,' Romer added. 'Environmental stress could also be playing a major role.' Nine-armed sea stars are key predators and scavengers. By disturbing seabed sediments while feeding, they help maintain ecological balance. Their loss could lead to algae overgrowth and the collapse of seagrass habitats critical to juvenile fish. 'Less sediment movement means more algae, less seagrass, and fewer nursery areas for sport fish,' Romer said. Public help urged UF/IFAS scientists are asking the public to report any sightings of sick or dead marine life to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 888-404-FWCC (3922), or on platforms like iNaturalist. 'Public observations are our early warning system,' Romer said. 'If you're visiting natural areas, bring a camera and stay alert. Your report could make a difference.'
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Hunting for Burmese pythons is best done in the dark
In a state known for its alligators, theme parks, and sun-seeking tourists of all stripes, Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus) are one unwelcome visitor. Thousands of these roughly 13-foot-long snakes usually found in Southeast Asia have been slithering around parts of Florida for about the last 40 years, wreaking havoc on native species and harming the ecosystem. While the exact number is unknown, some scientists estimate that there could be as many as 100,000 to 300,000 pythons in the Sunshine State. To combat this invasive species, the state sponsors a popular annual hunting contest in an effort to cull the population and works with various groups to catch the snakes. Scientists are also experimenting with finding the snakes with the environmental DNA that they leave behind. Now, University of Florida scientists have statistically analyzed data collected Burmese python contractors to figure out the most efficient way to remove the reptiles. The findings are detailed in a study recently published in the journal Scientific Reports. Burmese pythons are considered generalist predators. They can eat pretty much anything and numerous species–including large deer–have been found in their gut during necropsies. They also eat protected and threatened Florida species including the wood stork and Key Largo woodrat. They can consume meals equivalent to 100 percent of their body mass. However, there have been no reported human deaths from wild-living Burmese pythons in Florida. 'Pythons disrupt food webs, altering predator-prey dynamics and reducing populations of key native species,' Alex Romer, a study co-author and a quantitative ecologist at UF/IFAS Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, said in a statement. 'By refining removal strategies, we're working to give native wildlife a chance to adapt and persist.' The data was collected between May 2020 and April 2022 and the team analyzed a total of 4,092 surveys from python contractors totaling over 16,000 hours of effort in finding and containing the snakes. They looked through the data to see if factors like time of day or temperature impacted the chance of successfully removing a python. The team also analyzed whether the most surveyed areas in the state aligned with the highest python removals. This way, state officials can pinpoint regions where few contractors are catching a lot of pythons, indicating that more contractors should be working in these spots to remove more snakes. The analysis indicated two regions where efforts to remove pythons could be bolstered with more surveying. The western edge of Big Cypress National Preserve in the south central portion of the state and a stormwater treatment area in Palm Beach County to the east. The team also identified the optimal conditions that appear to improve survey outcomes. Python surveys are most successful and efficient from May through October–Florida's wet season. A drop of barometric pressure the day before also increases the likelihood of a successful python survey. The most efficient time to look for pythons is between the hours of 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. Surveying overnight generally yielded better results, except during periods of extreme cold. In Florida, this occurs when daily air temperatures reach 50 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. [ Related: Burmese pythons stretch their mouths even wider than we thought possible. ] Boats, canoes, kayaks, and airboats can also enhance survey effectiveness. According to the team, this data can inform new guidelines for state and local governments for successful detection and removal efforts. It also highlights the importance in citizen science, the data was collected as part of the SFWMD Python Elimination Program. The project trains individuals from all backgrounds to safely locate and contain pythons. 'Managing pythons is an enormous effort, undertaken by Floridians deeply invested in restoring the intricate ecological processes that define the Everglades,' said Romer. 'This work is about safeguarding one of the world's most unique ecosystems—not just for today, but for generations to come.'
