crown-of-thorns from the Great Barrier Reef.
Its spines and eggs are toxic, it can take more than a dozen injections to kill, and even splitting it in three won’t necessarily get rid of it.
Oh, and it can produce up to 120 million offspring in one spawning season and breeds for up to seven years.
If you didn’t know better, you might think the crown-of-thorns starfish was a nightmarish creature from a horror film.
But this invasive species is very real – and understanding just how dangerous and near-indestructible it is gives some insight into the value of game-changing research by researchers Sandie and Bernard Degnan from UQ's School of Biological Sciences.
