An international team of researchers has spatially mapped molecules produced by an intact, complex microbial community for the first time. Using a tiny slice of lichen, the team used imaging mass spectrometry to track and plot metabolites made by both bacterial and fungal lichen members. Their approach, published this week in mSystems, an open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology, shows how researchers can tease apart the chemistry that shapes and maintains a complex, three-dimensional microbial community.