Solving a marine mystery, one sea star at a time — meet the scientist bringing sunflower sea stars back from the brink
Doctor Jason Hodin earned his PhD in zoology from the University of Washington in 1999, originally studying insect metamorphosis, until a course at Friday Harbor Labs sparked a shift toward marine biology. He’s now a senior research scientist here, working to restore sunflower sea stars, a an apex predator nearly wiped out since 2013 by a wasting disease. The disease, a strain of the bacterium Vibrio pectenicida, was only identified in 2025, a breakthrough now guiding his efforts to breed and reintroduce the species and help kelp forests recover.