Updated post-AMA: Hi Reddit, Thanks to all of you who submitted questions, answers and insights. I wish I could have gotten to all of them and I thank you for your interest! Laura Jurgens (tweeting @seacurious) Hi Reddit, My name is Laura Jurgens and I am a postdoctoral researcher at Temple University and Smithsonian Institution. My research focuses on how marine organisms, and the interacting communities they form, respond to extreme events and global change. Together with a wonderful group of collaborators, I recently published a study titled “Patterns of Mass Mortality among Rocky Shore Invertebrates across 100 km of Northeastern Pacific Coastline” in PLOS ONE. In it, we describe an unusual event that killed nearly 100% of two species, a tiny sea star and a sea urchin, over a large region, following a harmful algal bloom or “red tide”. We discuss why it’s especially important, but often hard, to document such events, which may be increasing in severity and frequency with human-induced changes to our oceans. We also discuss how lifestyle differences between the affected species could determine how long it takes them to recover, and what that means for coastal ecosystems. I will be answering your questions at 1pm ET. Ask me Anything! You can also follow me on Twitter @SeaCurious.