Phormidiumat Bead Geyser?

The water in the geysers at Yellowstone is too hot to touch, yet it contains abundant microorganisms, even at boiling temperatures. These thermophiles, or "heat loving" organisms, have adapted to the extreme environments of the geysers. The beautiful colors surrounding the geysers are actually cyanobacterial "mats," colonies of millions of microorganisms. Although we wouldn't be able to see these microorganisms individually, the mat communities are visible to the naked eye.

A close up view of phormidium.

The orange patches around Bead Geyser may bePhormidium, a type of cyanobacteria that has been found growing around other hot springs in Yellowstone. The picture to the left is a close up picture of Phormidium at another hot spring.

Aerial view of Grand Prismatic Spring.

Cyanobacteria are strongly temperature dependent. The change in colors as you move from the vent of a hot spring to further down the runoff channels reflects the different cyanobacteria types living in the increasingly cooler outflow water. Water chemistry also influences the type of microorganisms that will live around a hot spring; different microorganisms live at alkaline and acidic springs. The picture to the left shows the brilliant colors of the cyanobacteria mats surrounding Grand Prismatic Spring, another hot spring at Yellowstone. Grand Prismatic is 370 feet across, making it one of the largest hot springs in the world.