• Sunlit_Steambath.jpg
  • Clear_Air_at_Yellowstone_Lake.jpg
  • Morning_Light_at_West_Thumb_Basin.jpg
  • Abyss_Pool_--_West_Thumb_Geyser_Basin.jpg
  • Underwater_Springs.jpg
  • Biological_Abstraction.jpg
  • Firehole_Spring_Splash.jpg
  • Great_Fountain_Geyser.jpg
  • White_Dome_Geyser.jpg
  • Fountain_Paint_Pots.jpg
  • Silex_Spring.jpg
  • Multi-Hued_Fumaroles.jpg
  • Clepsydra_Geyser.jpg
  • Take_Time_to_Smell_the_Flowers.jpg
  • Excelsior_Geyser_Crater.jpg
  • Excelsior_Geyser_Blues.jpg
           

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Biological Abstraction

One might be hard-pressed to think of bacteria as being in any way "beautiful", but the bacterial mats that surround the geothermal features at Yellowstone qualify. These are not your run-of-the-mill bacteria, however; they are thermophilic (heat-loving) bacteria that thrive in the hot waters along the edges of hot springs, and in the run-off channels from springs and geysers. The hot water of Yellowstone allows the bacteria, along with many types of algae, to thrive year-round, even through the harsh Wyoming winter. Over time, they form colorful streamers and ribbons that flow and wave under the waters flowing through them.
Biological Abstraction