New Snail Doesn’t Need To Eat

Psalm 104:25
“So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts.”

Some of the strangest creatures you can possibly imagine live around undersea hydrothermal vents known as “smokers” that spew out volcanically heated water and minerals. One of the most unusual creatures is an armor-plated snail that never needs to eat!

The as-yet-unnamed snail was discovered in the Indian Ocean. The sides of the snail’s foot have overlapping scales. Like the rest of the shell, these scales are coated in iron sulfide. This coating is the result of bacteria that, it is thought, deposit the iron sulfide on all outer shell surfaces. Most mollusks have a gland in their esophagus that contain symbiotic bacteria. These bacteria turn sulfides in the water passing through the snail’s gills into nutrition for the snail. However, in all mollusks known until the discovery of this snail, the mollusks must still eat to have enough nutrition to live. This newly discovered snail has a gland that is 100 times larger than any other snail. It provides the snail with all the nutrition it needs, so it never needs to eat.

This newly discovered snail once again shows us that God’s wisdom and power are unlimited. This is comforting, for we are reminded that His greatest wisdom and power are seen through His love toward us in the Gospel. His plan of salvation for us reflects His greatest wisdom and power.

Prayer:
Father, I rejoice at Your wisdom and power in creating an amazing living world. Amen.

Author: Paul Bartz

Notes:
Science News, 11/8/03, p. 291, S. Perkins, “Cast-Iron Foot.” Photo: Snail adult specimen of Chrysomallonsquamiferum. – Chong Chen, Katsuyuki Uematsu, Katrin Linse& Julia D. Sigwart (CC By 4.0)