Scaly-foot snail
Depth: 3,650 m · Midnight Zone
The scaly-foot snail lives deep down at hot springs and is the only animal that wears armor made of iron. Its foot is covered with hard scales into which it builds iron. That protects it from attackers. It gets its energy from bacteria that live inside its body.
For scientists
The scaly-foot snail (Chrysomallon squamiferum) is the only animal known to build iron sulfides (pyrite and greigite) into its skeleton: its foot scales and three-layered shell contain iron and are considered extremely impact-resistant. It lives only at a few hydrothermal vents in the Indian Ocean and feeds via chemosynthetic bacteria housed in a greatly enlarged esophageal gland. Because of planned deep-sea mining at its few habitats, it is considered endangered.
Source: Wikipedia
🌊 Swim straight to it in 3D