September 27, 2015
Halite and Trona from California
This update consists of a number of very fine Halite and Trona associations. I hand picked the best from the 2013 and 2014 collecting seasons at Owens Lake in the high desert of California. The California drought has been very good for the formation of evaporites in this restricted lake, and has led to much greater variation in pink to red colors due to rising and falling water levels. The Trona (a relatively rare carbonate) from Owens Lake is spectacularly good.

Some have speculated that this Halite is dyed; however, it is naturally-colored pink by the residual pigment left behind by the halophilic (salt-loving) rod-shaped archaeabacteria, Halobacterium halobium, that lives in the lake. These bacteria produce a red carotenoid pigment similar to that found in red peppers and pink flamingos, which imparts varying shades of deep- to light-pink to these specimens, depending on water level and bacteria concentration. The color and crystals are stable in all but the most humid environments.