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While beachgoers view this summer’s massive sargassum seaweed blooms as a foul-smelling nuisance, Â鶹ŮÀÉ doctoral student Ellyn Willse sees a vital drifting ecosystem. Researching from Fort Pierce to Key West under the supervision of Â鶹ŮÀÉ Harbor Branch’s Brian Lapointe, Ph.D., Willse is studying how the algae serves as a critical refuge for endangered sea turtles and commercially important fish like mahi-mahi.

Her work also investigates public health and environmental safety by tracking how arsenic moves through the sargassum food web using stable isotopes. Ultimately, the study aims to uncover how the expanding Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt impacts marine life, prey availability, and our seafood supply.

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