December 9, 2009 - More than 10,000 were left high and dry on the sands after choppy seas washed them from their feeding grounds. And unfortunately, nearly all perished, unable to get back to the safety of the water. The graveyard of orange and pink extends more than a quarter of a mile along the golden sands of Holkham Beach in Norfolk.
It's a long stretch of beach and there were just thousands of them littering the shore line for as far as you could see.
The starfish, which washed up early last week, may have been victims of dredgers scraping the seabeds for mussels, their favourite food. The process could have dislodged the feeding starfish and the currents carried them to the shore. Strandings tend to occur once a year or once every two years.
'They are also most common between November and March - the time of the year when we experience bigger tides.'
It's a long stretch of beach and there were just thousands of them littering the shore line for as far as you could see.
The starfish, which washed up early last week, may have been victims of dredgers scraping the seabeds for mussels, their favourite food. The process could have dislodged the feeding starfish and the currents carried them to the shore. Strandings tend to occur once a year or once every two years.
'They are also most common between November and March - the time of the year when we experience bigger tides.'
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1234177/Thousands-starfish-carpet-Norfolk-beach-storm-throws-sea.html#ixzz0ZDSJe945
