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Cover Figure


Cover photograph (Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.): Sunset over the cyanobacterial mat in Mushroom Spring, Yellowstone National Park. Mats like these have been studied for decades as natural models in which to discover principles governing the composition, structure, and function of microbial communities. Many diel metabolic rhythms are now being discovered in this community. One example, presented by van der Meer et al. in this issue, is temporal variation in anoxygenic photosynthesis. During low-light periods, inorganic electron donors such as H2 ad H2S, which are not present in the oxygenated daytime photic zone, accumulate and have the potential to drive this process. (See related article on page 3978.)


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