Saline environments are one of the most plentiful and interesting types of habitats on Earth and are often considered as models for potential life on other planets or moons. The hypersaline playas, sabkhas, salterns, lakes, soils and even crystals often contain biomass that is far in excess of what might be predicted from the environmental conditions alone. The populations become so dense they color the brines and have been noticed by humanity since 2500 BC. In addition much of planet Earth is underlain by vast ancient salt deposits that may be thousands of meters thick and stretch for many kilometers. Even deep within the Earth's crust there are vast reservoirs of saline water all of which contain salt loving microbes. These are not however simple terminal ecosystems. These saline habitats literally team with a complex web of life containing large populations of salt loving bacteria, archaea, algae, viruses and even fungi.  Halophilic microorganisms are one of the more fascinatingmicrobial groups known today. Their ability to exist in exceptionally high salt (as NaCl) brines, soils and even in ancient halite provides a wide array of areas for physiological, ecological and molecular studies. Whenever media reports present something on salt loving microbes there is intense public interest and fascination. The scientists that begin to study halophiles never stop.

1. Approaches toward the study of halophilic microorganisms in their natural environments: who are they and what are they doing?. - 2. Media and Conditions for the Growth of Halophilic and Halotolerant Bacteria and Archaea. - 3. Taxonomy of Halophilic Archaea and Bacteria. - 4. Halophilic Viruses. - 5.       Microorganisms in Evaporites: A review of modern Geomicrobiology. - 6. Searching for microbes and DNA in ancient halite. - 7. DNA Replication and Repair in Halophiles. - 8. Gene Transfer Mechanisms, Population Genetics/Genomics and the Evolution of Haloarchaea. - 9. Worth Your Salt: Halophiles in Education. - 10. Halophiles in the Public Media.