In a breakthrough for marine conservation, scientists at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco are successfully spawning and raising critically endangered sunflower sea stars in captivity, an effort that could help restore the species in the wild. Once decimated by sea star wasting disease, sunflower sea stars lost more than 90% of their population in just a decade. But now, after years of research, biologists have learned to breed them, and are building up captive populations for future reintroduction along California’s coast. Three fully mature stars, recently brought from Alaska, are now on public display at the Academy’s Steinhart Aquarium, where visitors can witness these giant predators, some growing up to three feet across. These sea stars are not just captivating. They play a vital role in controlling sea urchin populations that threaten California’s kelp forests, a crucial carbon sink and biodiversity hotspot. Three other California aquariums are also now caring for sunflower sea stars. And this year, at least four were spotted off the Mendocino coast, marking a hopeful sign of natural return. Scientists say that’s “super exciting,” as none had been seen there in years.