Making 'lemonade': Chance observation leads to study of microbial bloom formation

(Marine Biological Laboratory) A team from the Microbial Diversity course at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass., studied a brackish, shallow lagoon over time and found it releases hydrogen sulfide, particularly upon physical disturbance, causing blooms of anoxygenic sulfur-oxidizing phototrophs. To study the habitat, microbial community structure, assembly and function they carried out in situ experiments investigating the bloom dynamics over time.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - Category: Biology Source Type: news