What is a typical bacterial colony?

Each distinct colony represents an individual bacterial cell or group that has divided repeatedly. Being kept in one place, the resulting cells have accumulated to form a visible patch. Most bacterial colonies appear white or a creamy yellow in colour, and are fairly circular in shape.

How do you identify a bacterial colony?

Different types of bacteria produce different-looking colonies, some colonies may be colored, some colonies are circular in shape, and others are irregular. A colony's characteristics (shape, size, pigmentation, etc.) are termed the colony morphology. Colony morphology is the way scientists identify bacteria.