Endolithic Blue-Green Algae in the Dry Valleys: Primary Producers in the Antarctic Desert Ecosystem

Endolithic unicellular blue-green algae occur under the surface of orthoquartzite rocks in the dry valleys of southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. This report of primary producers in the Antarctic desert ecosystem suggests that, in future efforts to detect life in extraterrestrial (for example, marti...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Authors: Friedmann, E. Imre, Ocampo, Roseli
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1976
Subjects:
Antarctic
The Antarctic
Victoria Land
Antarc*
Antarctica
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1126/science.193.4259.1247
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.193.4259.1247
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Summary:Endolithic unicellular blue-green algae occur under the surface of orthoquartzite rocks in the dry valleys of southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. This report of primary producers in the Antarctic desert ecosystem suggests that, in future efforts to detect life in extraterrestrial (for example, martian) environments, scientists should consider the possible existence of endolithic life forms.

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