Image credit: Jim Grazio/USGS.
First detected in Minnesota in 2015, an invasive seaweed called Starry Stonewort (Nitellopsis obtusa) has been quietly transforming waters across the state. This Eurasian invader grows into thick, underwater carpets that make swimming and boating difficult while choking out native plants and animals that keep local ecosystems healthy. Current management is a reactive, costly, and short-term fix that risks damaging the very water quality it aims to protect.
To change the script, this research project will use long-read DNA technology, a high-tech sequencing method that captures more detail than traditional tests, to map the entire Starry Stonewort genome. By studying samples from infested Minnesota lakes, the project team is searching for a unique genetic fingerprint or marker for this specific species.
Once identified, this genetic marker will allow resource managers to detect Starry Stonewort the moment it enters a lake, long before it becomes visible to the naked eye. Findings will be shared with the global scientific community through public databases like the National Center for Biotechnology Information, which will provide the basis for a faster, more precise, and cost-effective way to keep Minnesota waters clear of Starry Stonewart.
Funding
This project is supported by a Minnesota Sea Grant 2025 Fast-Track Grant. This work is supported by the Minnesota Sea Grant College Program using federal and/or matching funds under award NA24OARX417C0033-T1-01 from the National Sea Grant College Program, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Sea Grant College Program, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, or the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Project team
Lead Principal Investigator:
Lynn Waterhouse
[email protected]
Assistant Professor
Assistant Unit Leader, Fisheries - Minnesota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
University of Minnesota
Co-Principal Investigator:
Dhananjay Gotarkar
gotarkar@umn.edu
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation Biology
University of Minnesota
Why Sea Grant?
This project supports Minnesota Sea Grant's focus area in Healthy Coastal Ecosystems.
By developing ways to identify species-specific genetic markers for Starry Stonewort, resource managers will be able to detect this invasive macroalgae sooner and respond accordingly, which will protect native vegetation, aquatic habitats and recreational access to Minnesotan waters.
Lead scientist(s)
Lynn Waterhouse
[email protected]
Assistant Professor
Assistant Unit Leader, Fisheries - Minnesota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
University of Minnesota