PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — After more than a decade of decline, Oregon and Northern California sea stars appear to be making a comeback.

A baby boom of ochre sea stars is enabling the species to recover on the Oregon Coast, according to the latest findings from scientists at Oregon State University and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The study was recently published in the journal Ecosphere.

"Wasting disease remains in circulation and populations continue to fluctuate, but there’s also much evidence that ochre sea stars are bouncing back," said Sarah Gravem, the study's lead author.

Until recently, the ochre sea star population had been in decline since a mysterious disease caused a mass-die off. The disease, first recorded in 2013, decimated sea star populations from Mexico to Alaska. It causes

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