Genetic evidence in tracking the origin of Ulva prolifera blooms in the Yellow Sea, China

•Intraspecific genetic diversity exist within green alga Ulva prolifera.•Blooming U. prolifera in Yellow Sea is unique and can be detected with SCAR marker.•The marker was used to examine U. prolifera speciemens collected in China.•U. prolifera propagules in seawater and thalli attached to aquaculture rafts is the same ecotype as blooming U. prolifera.•Aquaculture rafts in Subei Shoal are a major source of floating green algae. Recurrent green tides have been recorded in the Yellow Sea for 11 consecutive years. The origin of floating green algae in the Yellow Sea, however, remains a subject of debate. Previous studies suggest that the major bloom-forming green alga Ulva prolifera represent a unique ecotype different from other attached populations of U. prolifera in China. In this study, 97 green algal samples collected during the 2012 green-tide event and from other locations along the coastline of China were analyzed. Based on the sequences of nuclear ribosomal RNA gene (rDNA) internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and 5S rDNA spacer region, the green alga U. prolifera in the samples were identified. The intraspecific genetic diversity within U. prolifera was then examined using sequences of 5S rDNA spacer and a marker of sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) highly specific for bloom-forming U. prolifera in the Yellow Sea. The screening results for SCAR marker demonstrated that U. prolifera attached to aquaculture rafts in Subei Shoal belong to the same ecotype of the bloom-forming U. prolifera in the Yellow Sea. These findings offer genetic evidence that aquaculture rafts in Subei Shoal are a major source of floating green algae in the Yellow Sea.