Tufa is quite hard and has the consistency of concrete.
The black objects are alkali flies, the white ones (upper right) are dried pupae cases. Early native people ate these salty, crunchy, protein-filled morsels! Yum?!!! :0
Only three organisms can survive the saline water of Mono Lake --- brine shrimp, brine flies, and green algae. I enjoyed seeing the delicate half-inch shrimp swimming in the clear water. The black area on the beach is a layer of millions of brine flies. These small flies will scatter a few inches above sand when disturbed; fortunately, they don't bother people! The California gull will enjoy the flies as a snack since there are no fish in the lake. The shrimp and fly larvae eat the algae, which begins this very limited food chain. 3.3.spi.2, 4.3.tpi.5, 5.2.tpi.1
