Thousands of starfish wash up on Kirkcaldy beachfront after rough conditions

Thousands of starfish were found washed up along Kirkcaldy promenade and adjacent rocky shoreline in Fife on Monday, prompting a local environmental trust to monitor the scene and warn beachgoers to keep dogs under control.

Fife Coast and Countryside Trust said an inspection of the sites found large numbers of dead starfish scattered across the foreshore and that strong onshore winds and storm-driven seas could have dislodged the animals from the seabed. The trust said it would allow natural tidal processes to reclaim the remains while continuing to monitor the situation.

Marine invertebrates such as starfish, crabs and other crustaceans often inhabit shallow waters or migrate near the surface, making them more likely to be swept onto beaches as tides ebb and flow, the trust said. It advised dog owners to keep pets under close control because some starfish species can be toxic if handled or ingested.

Researchers pointed to a behaviour known as "starballing" as a probable cause of mass strandings. Scientists at Plymouth University's Marine Institute first documented the behaviour during surveys in 2016, observing starfish curl their arms into a ball and use strong tides to float and relocate. Dr. Emma Sheehan, who was part of the team, said the Kirkcaldy event appeared "particularly bad" and that when tides and onshore winds align the floating behaviour can make starfish vulnerable to being carried ashore.

"During the survey, the tides and wind picked up and to our complete surprise, starfish started flying past the camera, with their arms curled into a ball shape," Dr. Sheehan said. She added that while adult starfish were previously thought to move only by slowly crawling along the seabed, they can also use currents to relocate to feeding or breeding grounds — a process that may occasionally lead to mass strandings.

Starfish can survive out of water for only a short time and are vulnerable to predation by birds and crabs once on the shore. The trust and marine researchers said that if people find living starfish on the beach it is worth helping to return them to the water, but they cautioned against handling animals if uncertain of the species or risks.

Tidal conditions at the time of the Kirkcaldy stranding coincided with a full moon, when the alignment of the sun, moon and Earth produces higher-than-normal high tides and lower-than-normal low tides. Such spring tides, combined with recent rough seas and strong winds, are likely contributors to the event, local experts said.

Mass strandings of starfish and other sea life have been recorded in the UK during large storm events. In November 2021, Storm Arwen drove hundreds of starfish and other creatures ashore near Nairn in the Highlands. Storm Emma in 2018 left hundreds of starfish and shellfish dead along miles of West Norfolk beaches, and episodes of widespread stranding were reported on the Black Isle in the Moray Firth in 2017.

Fife Coast and Countryside Trust said it will continue to survey the affected stretch of coastline and issue further advice if conditions change. Scientists said more targeted study of starballing and coastal transport mechanisms would help clarify why such mass strandings occur intermittently and which species are most at risk.