Scaly-foot gastropods are also known as scaly-foot snails, sea pangolins, and Iron Snails! Or if you want to be scientific, Chrysomallon squamiferum is a species of deep-sea hydrothermal-vent snails. These vent-endemic gastropods were discovered in Apr 2001 and only live in deep water (over a mile deep) by hydrothermal vents in three tiny locations in the Indian Ocean.
But first, some life advice. Don’t tell women to smile. We don’t like it, and it does not make us feel better. Actually, just stop telling people in general what to do. Nobody likes it.
Scaly-foot snails have an unique shell with the outer layer consisting of iron sulfides. Its “foot” is also unusual because it is armored at the sides with iron-mineralized sclerites. They are the only known animal that incorporates iron into their skeleton. Why do they have iron in their skeletons? We’re not sure, but it probably has something to do with the bacteria that live inside, and on, it and provide all its nutrients.
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