Stromatolites
Stromatolites
They are among the earliest geological evidence for life and show how microbes changed Earth's surface.
Image: Didier Descouens · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
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Characteristics
- Scientific name
- Stromatolites
- Period
- Archean
- Lived
- 3.5–3.2 bn years ago (3.5 billion years ago)
- Diet
- Photosynthetic
- Habitat
- Reef, Coast
Description
Stromatolites are layered structures formed as microbial mats trapped sediment and precipitated minerals. In the Strelley Pool Formation they are generally associated with photosynthetic microorganisms, including cyanobacteria or their precursors. The reefs grew in shallow water on a young Earth with almost no free oxygen in the atmosphere. The exact age and biological origin of the oldest structures remain under study.
Habitat
Shallow, warm seas along early continental margins.
Fossil sites
Strelley Pool Formation, Pilbara
Strelley Pool Formation
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Sources: Stromatoliet