The chemical composition of living beings is very varied and intriguing; bones, for example, are made of calcium that came from the explosion of a supernova. But there are animals that position themselves as the kings of chemical composition by incorporating elements that no other animal has in the structure of their exoskeleton. Scaly-footed snails have a shell made of iron and behave like living magnets.
In the middle of the Indian Ocean there are fissures that could seem like portals to unknown dimensions, known as hydrothermal vents. These are cracks in the seabed from which the force of the volcanic magma that is close to the bed escapes. In these regions geothermal flows at elevated temperatures, as they have been heated by molten rock flowing beneath the sediment.
*Credits: NOAA
But they are also a paradise for certain types of life such as scaly-legged snails (Chrysomallon squamiferum) that live at a sea depth of between 2,400 and 2,900 meters. It is to be expected that these small creatures that venture to live near the magama, endure violently high temperatures; They are capable of surviving temperatures of 400ºC.
Snails
These types of animals are unique and very unusual, due to their peculiar shape they have also been called ‘marine pangolins’ and have only been found in three hydrothermal vents around the world, all of them in the Indian Ocean. In that sense, it has been very difficult for researchers to understand the wild nature of these animals, however, it is known that they are the only living beings that incorporate iron in their exoskeleton, which means that they behave like living magnets.
Biologists believe they take in elements present in geothermal water, compounds such as iron sulfide and other chemicals such as pyrite and gregite. But not all snails are the same, they have adopted different colorations depending on the vent where they are found.
For example, snails from the Kairei vent, which is located between the western coast of Africa and eastern Africa, have a black color that gives them an even more iron-like appearance. On the other hand, those scaly-legged snails found in the Longqi vent have a more ocher coloration. And finally the Soliteire vent snails are much lighter than the previous two.
*Credits: Chong Chen
It is believed that these animals make use of the compounds present in geothermal waters to incorporate them into their shells and from this, they obtain their different colors. But they all contain deposits of iron and gregite in their exoskeletons that make them unexpectedly magnetic.
Unfortunately, deep sea mining has become increasingly a focus for mining companies, as these regions are extremely rich in metals and minerals, so the existence of scaly-legged snails is in danger.