Carleton group publishes paper about research based in McKnight Prairie

The group includes two recent alumni, Carleton’s Arb director, and two biology faculty members.

5 May 2026 Posted In:

Recent alumni Thea Traw ’25 and Anna Ursin ’25; Nancy Braker ’81, Puzak Family Director of the Cowling Arboretum and senior lecturer in biology; Mark McKone, Towsley Professor of Biology and research supervisor of the Cowling Arboretum; and Stephan Zweifel, professor of biology and head coach of men’s tennis, published a paper in the Natural Areas Journal titled, “Genetic Evidence for Interspecific Hybridization in a Threatened Legume, Lespedeza leptostachya, in a Southern Minnesota Native Prairie Remnant.”

The research took place in Carleton’s McKnight Prairie, and could help in conserving this rare species.

Read the full paper.