The shell provides protection and structure to the snail and if you tried to pull a live snail out of it you’d probably only manage to get part of it out, as they’re basically glued to the shell. Can snails live without a shell?Ī snail cannot live without its shell just as a human cannot live without bones. Glands that are distributed across their body solidify the shell with calcium carbonate. The older they get, the thicker their shells become. Young snails have shells that are nearly transparent. Some wildlife obtain the nutrient calcium by consuming live land snails or their empty shells.Īt birth, the visceral hump turns along its lineal axis, eventually creating a coiled snail shell. Land snail shells, for those species that have them, are made mostly of calcium carbonate with a protein outer coating. Valuable metals and minerals pepper the creature’s habitat, drawing commercial interest to the sea floor. Ocean snail is first animal to be officially endangered by deep-sea mining. They grow to a large size and feature gorgeous, glossy shells that range in color from chocolate brown to the deepest black. They also might bury themselves in the sandy ocean floor looking for algae, dead plants, or other organisms to eat.Īlso known as Lava Snails or Faunus ater, these dark and mysterious snails are highly underrated members of the aquarium hobby. They like to live around reefs and attach themselves to surfaces underwater like rocks and plants. Sea snails live in oceans and seas all over the world. And it’s all thanks to bacteria, which seem to be building the armor. On top of this, the squishy part that protrudes out of the shell, known as the foot, is covered with iron plates, making the scaly-foot snail more metal than Ozzy Osbourne wrapped in tin foil. How does the scaly-foot snail produce its iron armor? Researchers also believe the snail doesn’t really eat anything, but instead it relies on energy produced from bacteria it hosts in a large gland. It builds the outer layer of its shell with iron sulfide, creating a suit of armor around its squishy, snaily innards.

Lava snail