Meet the Giant, Toxic Starfish That’s Menacing Reefs

(man humming Jaws Theme)

Alright, maybe speed it up a bit.

Behold the slow-mo attack of the dreaded

Crown of Thorns starfish.

If you are a coral, you'd be in serious trouble right now.

The Crown of Thorns is enormous as you might have noticed,

growing to over two feet wide.

Those spines aren't just sharp and prone to snapping off

in your flesh if you grab one.

They're covered in some seriously nasty toxins

that can lead to severe pain and swelling for humans.

With such defenses, the Crown of Thorns has few predators,

and that's a problem for coral, it's food of choice.

The Crown of Thorns simply rolls over the reef,

extruding it's huge stomach to dissolve fleshy bits

of coral, known as polyps.

One or two starfish here or there ain't no thing,

but every so often these critters appear in huge numbers,

and scientists aren't yet sure why.

That's taxing reefs that are already suffering

under the weight of climate change.

So, here's to hoping scientists can figure out

how to control the thing,

because this little fish

certainly isn't pulling it's weight.

Huh, nope!