Translation of energy into morphology: Simulation of stromatolite morphospace using a stochastic model

Abstract

Stromatolites are examples of an iterative system involving radiate accretive growth of microbial mats, biofilm and/or minerals that result from interaction between intrinsic and extrinsic factors, which progressively shape the final morphology. These interactions can neither be easily described by simple mathematical equations, nor by simple physical laws or chemical reactions. Therefore, a holistic approach that will reduce the system to a set of variables (which are combinations of natural variables) is proposed in order to create virtual morphologies which will be compared with their natural counterparts. The combination of both Diffusion Limited Aggregation (DLA) and cellular automata (CA) allows the exploration of the stromatolite morphological space and a representation of the intrinsic and extrinsic factors responsible for natural stromatolite morphogenesis. The holistic approach provides a translation in simple parameters of (1) the way that energy, nutrients and sedimentary particles reach the active surface of a future build-up, (2) how these elements are distributed and used in order to create morphology, and (3) how simple environmental parameters, such as sedimentation, can disturb morphogenesis. In addition, most Precambrian stromatolite morphologies that are impossible to produce with numerical modeling such as the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang (KPZ) equation can be simulated with the DLA-CA model and this, with a minimum set of variables.

Comparative Characterization of the Microbial Diversities of an Artificial Microbialite Model and a Natural Stromatolite

“…Although there have been previous successful attempts to model simulated stromatolite communities in silico (19) and to examine the calcification potential of artificial cyanobacterial mats (34), there have been few examples of microbialites actively formed in culture. The artificial microbialite model developed in this study should provide a unique opportunity to experimentally manipulate communities in vitro and to examine the genetic processes associated with stromatolite accretion and growth.…”

“…Stochastic, in silico models have provided insight into the role of microbial mat composition and environmental conditions in stromatolite morphology and growth (19); however, these computer-based models have not been comple-mented yet with experimentally manipulable in vitro models. There are numerous examples of cultivated cyanobacterial microbial mats from Antarctic lakes (10), hypersaline ecosystems (1,7,28), and marine ecosystems (22)(23)(24); however, only a single laboratory cultivated mat has been shown to undergo lithification in vitro (25).…”

Formation and Taphonomy of Human Footprints in Microbial Mats of Present-Day Tidal-flat Environments: Implications for the Study of Fossil Footprints

“…However, if humidity remains only within a deep footprint, the microbial mat continues to grow within the footprint but not around it, thus slowly filling it up and forming a stack of internal overtracks. Finally, mat growth also depends on other extrinsic factors such as sedimentation rate, light, salinity, and temperature (e.g., Dupraz et al, 2006).…”

Origin and significance of lamination in Lower Cretaceous stromatolites and proposal for a quantitative approach

“…Jones, 1981;Takashima and Kano, 2008;Petryshyn et al, 2012) and pattern of arrangement (e.g. Zhang et al, 1993;Batchelor et al, 2000;Dupraz et al, 2006;Wagstaff and Corsetti, 2010;Petryshyn and Corsetti, 2011;Mata et al, 2012), but quantitative analyses of stromatolite lami na thickness are not common (e.g., Komar et al, 1965;Bertrand-Sarfati, 1972;Petryshyn et aI., 2012).…”