Manomet Point and the smelly seaweed #thanksJapanallythibault

"It smelled like a sewer... rotting. It was nasty," AccuWeather Expert Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said. He was driving about 200 yards from a Rhode Island beach when he smelled the awful odor of a foreign red seaweed.

"I grew up on the beach in Rhode Island, and I never smelled anything like that," Anderson added.

A red seaweed originating from Japan is invading New England beaches, causing a pungent odor and potentially posing risks to native species of sea life.

The seaweed, called Heterosiphonia japonica, was first spotted in New England in 2009.

Coastal areas from the Long Island Sound to Cape Mann in northern Massachusetts are where the seaweed is thriving. Currently, it is most prevalent along the northern Massachusetts coastline.

It is believed that the foreign seaweed was carried over from Japan to Europe then Europe to the East Coast of the U.S. by ships.

Judy Pederson, advisory leader and project coordinator of the MIT Sea Grant, said that the seaweed has been a prolific biomass since the spring.

"To some extent the biomass is related to the warm water," Pederson said. Warmer water temperatures may help the seaweed pick up nitrogen in the ocean more efficiently.

But it is not just the warm water temperatures that may be boosting the abundance of this stinky seaweed.

"What we do know is that there were fewer storms and less snow this past winter... Storms tear stuff up and drop it on the beach when people are not going," Matthew Bracken, assistant professor at Northeastern University, said.

Meanwhile, there are a couple possibilities behind the noxious odor of the seaweed. One is the actual composition of the seaweed, because it may produce compounds that contain sulfur degrades. The other reason for the smell may be  bacteria, which helps to decompose the seaweed, produces hydrogen sulfide.

There are fears that the foreign red seaweed is likely to impact the ecosystem, displacing native species off the New England coast. The seaweed may outcompete native species by limiting the food source available to them.

For instance, the smelly seaweed settles and grows on eelgrass, native marine life that is more like grass than algae since it has flowers and seeds.

"Eelgrass is very productive, and fish hide among its grassy blades," Pederson explained. It is an important part of the ecosystem.

The seaweed inhibits eelgrass from being productive by limiting the sunlight that reaches it. The growth also makes eelgrass more susceptible to storms, making more leaves break up and wash ashore.

Other similar native species of red algae and even coral-like structures may also be at risk due to competition.

Bracken and a research team are removing the foreign seaweed in some areas to study whether native species will thrive again where numbers have dropped.

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Thanks for the report, @reillyadam, but even stinky seaweed won't stop me from going to the beach this weekend.Anne Mostue

On my way back from the beach... seaweed everywhere #gross #smellysmmie4life