Cryptobiotic soil often looks like a discolored patch ... A major component of these crusts is often photosynthesizing bacteria called cyanobacteria. The cyanobacteria form sticky filaments ...

Biocrust, also called cryptobiotic soil, is a "community of tiny ... "Compared with bare rammed earth, the cyanobacteria, moss and lichen biocrust-covered sections of the Great Wall exhibited ...