Cyanobacterial inhabitation on Archean rock surfaces in the Pilbara Craton, Western Australia
- Hoshino, Yosuke
- George, Simon C
DOIAbstract
High abundances of 7- and 6-monomethylalkanes as well as C₁₇ n-alkane, indicative of cyanobacteria, have been discovered near the surfaces of Archean carbonate rocks of the Fortescue Group in the Pilbara region, Western Australia. The presence of cyanobacterial biomarkers is mostly limited to the surface layer (<1 cm thickness) of the rocks, indicating that the cyanobacteria are an endolithic species. Biomarkers are found in bitumen I (solvent-extracted rock) and also in bitumen II (solvent-extracted decarbonated rock). The abundance of biomarkers is generally the same between both bitumen fractions in the surface layer, which suggests that the cyanobacteria penetrated into the carbonate minerals. Trace amounts of the biomarkers have also d...
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