Bacterial Mat

Description:

Bacterial Mat is a multi-layered sheet of micro-organisms, mainly bacteria and archaea. Microbial mats grow at interfaces between different types of material, mostly on submerged or moist surfaces but a few survive in deserts They colonize environments ranging in temperature from –40°C to +120°C. A few are found as endosymbionts of animals. Although only a few centimetres thick at most, microbial mats create a wide range of internal chemical environments, and hence generally consist of layers of micro-organisms that can feed on or at least tolerate the dominant chemicals at their level and which are usually of closely related species. In moist conditions mats are usually held together by slimy substances secreted by the micro-organisms, and in many cases some of the micro-organisms form tangled webs of filaments which make the mat tougher. The best known physical forms are flat mats and stubby pillars called stromatolites, but there are also spherical forms.

Habitat:

hot springs.

Notes:

Researchers have discovered an unusual bacterium species - called Chloracidobacterium thermophilum - that uses photosynthesis, and lives in the colorful mats of microbes drift in the warmth of a hot spring.