Ecology
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Mat-Forming Species
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Cyanobacteria are a common component of the periphyton (the ensemble of microorganisms attached
to submerged surfaces), forming crusts and films over rocks (epilithon), plants (epiphytes), sand (epipsammon),
sediments (epipelon), and other substrates. In many environments, these biofilms accumulate from
millimeters to centimeters in thickness as vertically structured, microbial mats that form a benthic layer
at the bottom of the water column, or that detach and float at the surface.