The matting ferroamoeba split from it's ancestor and moved onto the outer chimney surfaces of black smokers, where it forms immobile, slimy mats, especially in areas where larger amounts of pyrite can be found. It developed heat-resistant enzymes and a very viscous cell membrane to withstand the higher temperatures. When the black smoker the colony lives on becomes inactive, the heat reduction triggers the creation of a floating form very similar to its ancestor which eventually lands on an actice one where it can form a new colony. The matting ferroamoeba lost its ability to process the rather inefficient silicon and lives solely on iron.
Living Relatives (click to show/hide)
These are randomly selected, and organized from lowest to highest shared taxon. (This may correspond to similarity more than actual relation)
