What this "Stromatolites" Really Is?

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Stromatolites are biologically produced structures formed by colonies of photosynthesizing cyanobacteria. Their building communities include oldest known fossils, dating back some 3.5 billion years-old. Stromatolites are unique trace fossils that record both the effect of microbes in the local environment and the effect of environmental influences on microbial ecosystems.

Stromatolite is derived from Greek word means “Stony Carpet”. Today stromatolites are nearly extinct in marine environments, living a precarious existence in only few localities worldwide.

Formation:

They can form inorganically when seawaters are oversaturated with chemical precipitates. The four most widely cites paths are as follows for the formation of stromatolites.

• ·         Trapping model
• ·         Precipitating model
• ·         Stabilizing model
• ·         Calcifying model

In short process of formation can described as:

During Precambrian times, bacterial mats formed extensive platforms for trapping and cementing sediments. For photosynthetic bacteria depletion of CO₂ in surrounding water could cause precipitation of Calcium Carbonate. This Calcium Carbonate precipitation adding to grains of sediments together formed stromatolitec layers that grow one upon another with the living bacterial colonies occupying the upper most layers. Below is the layered stromatolite formed from the activity of ancient cyanobacteria.

Conclusion:

Stromatolites are fossil evidence of prokaryotic life that remains today. They maintain and recycle the atomic ingredients upon which proteins that “are” all life are made, including oxygen, nitrogen and carbon.