Black Spots Threaten Cave Drawings
This July, caretakers noticed new black spots covering some of the drawings. Samples taken from them showed the stains were caused by two fungi, ulocladium and gliomastix, that developed on top of a sublayer of existing bacteria.
Targeted biocides, which are substances that can kill bacteria, were tested on the samples. At a meeting this week, the Lascaux Caves International Scientific Committee approved the use of the localized biocides to treat the affected cave areas.
... more here.



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