Alcanivorax borkumensis is a microbe which digests crude oil. It prefers to live in oxygen-rich saltwater and is very helpful in cleaning up oil spills in ocean and coastal regions.

With enough nitrogen and phosphorus to act as fertiliser for them, these bacteria can become the dominant microbes in a contaminated area. They're just one of at least 7 known species which live off hydrocarbons, but they're probably the most prolific.

Just another of Earth's biological reflexes to help curb the damage which humans are capable of in their hubris.

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@InvaderXan okay but who the hell named it borkumensis

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