Distribution of morphological properties in this strain collection
Differentiation of the isolates was done based on five morphological categories: colony size, colony margin, surface appearance, metallic sheen, and hemolytic activity
The isolates were grown on blood agar for 24h at 37°C, before pictures of plates and single colonies were taken.
Morphology categorization was done based on:
colony size (ranging from very small (SCV) (=0) to large (=3)),
spreading of the colony (margin; ranging from 0 (none) to 2 (large),
surface appearance (ranging from 0 = rough over 1 = smooth and shiny to 2 = clearly mucoid),
iridescent metallic sheen (ranging from 0 = none to 2 = clearly visible throughout the bacterial lawn),
and hemolytic activity (ranging from 0 = none to 2 = enhanced)
