Tag Archive for 'Microbial mat'

Microbial mat chips scattered on a Cambrian tidal flat surface. Image credit: Nora Noffke.

Why Geologists Love Pond Scum

Apr 27, 2026 by Kenneth C. Gass

If you’ve ever wondered how geologists know so much about ancient beaches and shallow oceans — from the paleoenvironment to the animals roaming...

Stromatolites at Shark Bay, Western Australia. Image credit: Paul Harrison / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Viruses May Have Played Important Role in Creating Earth’s Earliest Lifeforms

Mar 4, 2021 by News Staff

Viruses may be the missing piece of the puzzle that could help explain how soft microbial mats transition into hard stromatolites that are prevalent in...

Schematic diagram showing the factors driving global ecological change in the modern day and at the end of the Triassic period. Image credit: Victor Lesh.

End-Triassic Mass Extinction Occurred Slightly Later Than Previously Thought

Nov 19, 2020 by News Staff

An analysis of biomarkers and their stable isotopic compositions from the Bristol Channel Basin at St. Audrie’s Bay and Lilstock, United Kingdom, has...

The Cinder Cones seep, the Ross Sea, Antarctica: the white microbial mats are telltale signs of areas where methane may be released from underground methane deposits. Image credit: Andrew Thurber, Oregon State University.

Scientists Discover Antarctica’s First Active Methane Seep

Jul 24, 2020 by News Staff

A team of marine ecologists from Oregon State University has described the formation and development of a new methane seep — a location where methane...