If you measure the success of a life form by how long they've managed to exist on Earth,

then by far the most successful forms of life have been stromatolites.

Stromatolites aren't the sexiest form of life.

They still exist on Earth today, but if you've seen them you might

never have even known it. In addition to having been around a long time, Stromatolites

are responsible for the entire world that we know today. Learn more about

Stromatolites, the oldest form of life on Earth,

on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. If you aren't familiar with what a stromatolite is, I don't blame you.

It isn't something that comes up in most science classes and you likely aren't going to encounter one out in the wider world.

Even by chance if you did come across a stromatolite, you probably

wouldn't know it because it looks very similar to a rock. So what is a stromatolite?

A stromatolite is simply a microbial mat. It's a colony of usually

sinobacteria also known as blue-green algae. More specifically, they are

bacterial mats that secrete a cement-type substance that make them look and feel just like rocks,

slimy rocks. They could also easily be confused with coral depending on where you find them in the world.

There aren't a whole lot of stromatolites in the world today.

Probably the best known location to see stromatolites would be in Shark Bay in Western Australia.

I actually went out of my way to make a trip to Shark Bay just to see the Stromatolites back in 2008.

And I'm guessing there aren't a whole lot of people who would go so far to their way to observe

what is the equivalent of a living rock, but then again, I do this podcast.

There are several places around the world

where you can find stromatolites,

...