Cyanotoxin which is why they are usually green or blue. Cyanobacteria are found almost everywhere; in oceans, lakes and rivers as well as on land. They flourish in Arctic and Antarctic lakes, hotsprings and wastewater treatment plants. They even inhabit the fur of polar bears, to which they impart a greenish tinge. Cyanobacteria produce potent toxins, but they also produce helpful bioactive compounds, including substances with antitumour, antiviral, anticancer, antibiotic and antifungal activity, UV protectants and specific inhibitors of enzymes. Cyanotoxins are often implicated in what are commonly called "red tides" or "harmful algal blooms". Lakes and oceans contain many single-celled
Great Lakes Patrol liquor smuggling from Canada across the rivers and lakes, a difficult task. The USS "Michigan" led the patrol, mostly singlehandedly, from its beginning on October 1, 1844 until the ship was retired in 1912. "Michigan" was the only American gunboat to patrol the vast Great Lakes. She was the navy's first steam-powered, iron-hulled warship. The "Michigan" was built to defend the lakes due to the construction of two British steamers during the Canadian rebellions in 1837. Based in Erie, Pennsylvania throughout her career, the gunboat was commissioned on September 29, 1844 under Commander William Inman. Because the Great Lakes are