Cyanobacteria diversity challenges 'one-size-fits-all' algal bloom solutions

When populations of tiny aquatic organisms called cyanobacteria (formerly known as blue-green algae) explode, their toxic overgrowth can threaten human drinking water and cause wildlife deaths in events known as harmful algal blooms (HABs). In freshwater environments such as lakes, ponds and streams, a cyanobacterium known as Microcystis aeruginosa is responsible for most toxic harmful algal bloom episodes.