Scientists have determined the cause of an epidemic that has devastated a species of starfish, wiping out billions over the last decade, and a Bay Area team is at the forefront of an effort to restore their population.

At the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, inside the Steinhart Aquarium, 7-year-old visitor Dylan Stewart was mesmerized by the Pycnopodia helianthoides , more commonly known as the sunflower sea star.

"I really like it," he exclaimed. "Because they're all going at different directions, kind of like a sunflower petal, and it's big like a sunflower."

The sunflower sea star can grow up to 24 arms, which explains the name. Dr. Rebecca Johnson, director at the Center for Biodiversity and Community Sciences and a scientist for the California Academy of Scie

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