Important clabbering milk question

[PaganGoy]

Is the curdling of milk at room temp just a separating of the curds, or is the bacteria also eating the curds themselves more and more over time?
Thanks

[Hiten]

The curds and the whey begin to separate as the bacteria consume the lactose, creating more probiotic bacteria and lactic acid. The acid causes the split and the proteins in the milk to curdle.

[norawnofun]

And thats the best way to make your own cheese called "quark" or "topfen". No heating, no rennet, salt or citric acid needed. Just get something like a muslin cloth or coffee filter, put a strainer underneath and something to catch the whey, let it sit for some hours or manually wriggle the cloth to fasten things and bingo.