Figure 3: Revised growth model of microbial structures in Hamelin Pool.
From: New multi-scale perspectives on the stromatolites of Shark Bay, Western Australia
In contrast to previous studies, our model recognizes two types of pustular and smooth mats. Nearshore pustular and filamentous cyanobacterial smooth mats form unlaminated and laminated fabrics in poorly lithified sheets. Seaward pustular, smooth and colloform mats that are all enriched in coccoid cyanobacteria form unlaminated, well laminated and moderately laminated fabrics in discrete lithified buildups. The red boxes highlight surface fabrics formed by the designated mat types; multiple fabrics may be present in a single buildup. Note that in our model, well-laminated fabrics in discrete buildups are products of coccoid-dominated, rather than filamentous-dominated, smooth mats.
