--- description: Alviconcha strummeri lives life to the extreme. title: Scientists Name New ‘Punk Rock’ Snail After The Clash’s Joe Strummer image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7f2b96b90295e42d/69876f08a988ca433d6ab6be/punk-snails.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Scientists Name New 'Punk Rock' Snail After The Clash's Joe Strummer by [Melissa Locker](/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 9:42 PM CUTPublished: Dec 15, 2014 11:49 PM CUT  Five new species of Alviniconcha snails were identified using DNA sequences. Five new species of Alviniconcha snails were identified using DNA sequences.Shannon Johnson—MBARI by [Melissa Locker](/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 9:42 PM CUTPublished: Dec 15, 2014 11:49 PM CUT **Correction appended: Dec. 16, 2014** _Alviconcha strummeri_ is a snail with serious attitude. These snails live in the deep sea near thermal vents 11,500 feet under water and their golf ball-sized shells are fully spiked. It’s no wonder the scientists who discovered them were reminded of mohawk-wearing, leather-clad punks. “Because they look like punk rockers in the 70s and 80s and they have purple blood and live in such an extreme environment, we decided to name one new species after a punk rock icon,” said Shannon Johnson, a researcher at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute told [the _Santa Cruz Sentinel_](http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/environment-and-nature/20141212/deemed-punk-rock-snail-named-after-the-clash-singer-joe-strummer "undefined"). Specifically, they named him Joe Strummer, after the leader of iconic British rock band The Clash. Strummer isn’t the first punk legend to have a species named for him: Sex Pistol John Lydon and members of The Ramones have had species of extinct trilobite named after them. In fact, an exhibition of [“Heavy Metal And Punk Fossils”](http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/heavy-metal-and-punk-fossils-exhibition-opens-in-norway/#iDRW2ABHgZ21557q.99 "undefined") opened at Oslo’s Natural History Museum last year. Plenty of non-rock celebrities have had species named for them, too. There’s a lemur named for Monty Python comedian John Cleese, a small parasite named after reggae legend Bob Marley and a species of whale named for _Moby Dick_ author Herman Melville. The practice is an easy and humorous way for scientists to draw attention to their discoveries. “This gets people excited about science,” [Johnson said](http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/environment-and-nature/20141212/deemed-punk-rock-snail-named-after-the-clash-singer-joe-strummer "undefined"). “Otherwise, people might not see these snails.” _Correction: The original version of this story misstated how deep these snails live under water. The correct distance is 11,500 feet._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3633750/scientists-name-new-punk-rock-snail-after-the-clashs-joe-strummer/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3633750/scientists-name-new-punk-rock-snail-after-the-clashs-joe-strummer/"},"headline":"Scientists Name New 'Punk Rock' Snail After The Clash's Joe Strummer","datePublished":"2014-12-15T23:49:02.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-13T21:42:36.000Z","description":"Alviconcha strummeri lives life to the extreme.","url":"https://time.com/3633750/scientists-name-new-punk-rock-snail-after-the-clashs-joe-strummer/","keywords":["Newsfeed","animals","Science topic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7f2b96b90295e42d/69876f08a988ca433d6ab6be/punk-snails.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Locker","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7f2b96b90295e42d/69876f08a988ca433d6ab6be/punk-snails.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"punk-snails","caption":"Five new species of Alviniconcha snails were identified using DNA sequences.","creditText":"Shannon Johnson—MBARI","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3633750/scientists-name-new-punk-rock-snail-after-the-clashs-joe-strummer/","name":"Scientists Name New 'Punk Rock' Snail After The Clash's Joe Strummer"}}]}] ```