The Green Desert of South America?

Abstract

“Pan de Azúcar National Park” is a fog oasis in the southern Atacama Desert of Chile. It hosts a diversity of cyanobacteria and green algae, which can especially be found in lichens. Diversity surveys and eco-physiological and biochemical studies have shown that these organisms are excellently adapted to the extreme climate and can already become active even if the amount of water available is very low. By changing their environment physically and chemically, they contribute to the weathering of rocks and soil formation and are thus involved in shaping the landscape.