View larger version | Viruses prey on marine floaters known as coccolithophores, which are characterized by their calcium carbonate plates. Two such victims, Gephyrocapsa oceanica (left) and Emiliania huxleyi are notable for their "blooms" (satellite image, above), population bursts that change the color of the seas and influence global temperatures by increasing the amount of light reflected off the planet. Killed by viruses, the victims' cells fall apart, releasing nutrients and sequestering carbon in the oceans. Credit: From left: Photo by Neon JA, colored by Richard Bartz/Wikimedia Commons; NASA