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The cyanobacterial algal mat, salty lake on the White Sea seaside. A microbial mat is a multi-layered sheet or biofilm of microbial colonies, composed of mainly bacteria and/or archaea. Microbial mats grow at interfaces between different types of material, mostly on submerged or moist surfaces, but a few survive in deserts. [1]
Blue-green algae cultured in specific media. Blue-green algae can be helpful in agriculture as they have the capability to fix atmospheric nitrogen to soil. This nitrogen is helpful to the crops. Blue-green algae is used as a biofertilizer.
Microalgae or microphytes are microscopic algae invisible to the naked eye. They are phytoplankton typically found in freshwater and marine systems, living in both the water column and sediment. [1] They are unicellular species which exist individually, or in chains or groups. Depending on the species, their sizes can range from a few ...
In very high densities (algal blooms), these algae may discolor the water and outcompete, poison, or asphyxiate other life forms. Algae can be used as indicator organisms to monitor pollution in various aquatic systems. [91] In many cases, algal metabolism is sensitive to various pollutants.
Chlamydomonas (/ ˌ k l æ m ɪ ˈ d ɒ m ə n ə s,-d ə ˈ m oʊ-/ KLAM-ih-DOM-ə-nəs, -də-MOH-) is a genus of green algae consisting of about 150 species [2] of unicellular flagellates, found in stagnant water and on damp soil, in freshwater, seawater, and even in snow as "snow algae". [3]
Algae also make up a large part of the biodiversity in brackish marshes. The most common algae, diatoms , make up a large portion of the algal community in brackish marshes. [ 15 ] Diatoms are eukaryotic microorganisms that have a cell wall that is composed of silica and can exists in freshwater or marine environments making them good ...
Algae constitute a polyphyletic group since they do not include a common ancestor, and although their chlorophyll-bearing plastids seem to have a single origin (from symbiogenesis with cyanobacteria), they were acquired in different ways. Green algae are a prominent example of algae that have primary chloroplasts derived from endosymbiont ...
Algal mats are one of many types of microbial mat that forms on the surface of water or rocks. They are typically composed of blue-green cyanobacteria and sediments. Formation occurs when alternating layers of blue-green bacteria and sediments are deposited or grow in place, creating dark-laminated layers.