picocyanobacteria
PY-koh-SY-uh-noh-bak-TEER-ee-uh
Definition
A group of extremely small photosynthetic bacteria that are fundamental components of marine food webs and oceanic carbon cycling.
Etymology
Derived from the Latin 'pico-' (meaning very small, specifically a factor of 10^-12), combined with 'cyano-' (blue-green) and 'bacteria' (single-celled microorganisms).
In the news
The article mentions these organisms to highlight that the Black Sea's 'dead zone' is not entirely devoid of life, as these bacteria were found surviving at significant depths.
At the bottom of the Black Sea, below about 150 metres, the water contains no oxygen at all, and shipwrecks preserved in that dead zone include a 2,400-year-old Greek merchant vessel found in 2018 with its mast, rudder and rowing benches still intact on the
Read the full article ↗ScienceBlog.com