Microbial sedimentary structures in the siliciclastic realm

ABSTRACT Microbially induced sedimentary structures (MISS) are microbialites that are very abundant in siliciclastic deposits, modern and fossil. Such structures have been studied only for a few decades. The morphologies of these microbialites differ greatly from those biosedimentary structures that are typical for carbonate environments, because they rise from the interaction of microbial mats with physical sediment dynamics, whereas chemical processes do not play a role. MISS have been described from marine and terrestrial settings alike and occur since the Earth Archean without any morphological changes. This themed issue is a collection of studies investigating MISS with respect to various sedimentological questions.