Dakota McCoy describes the heart cockle's upper shell as resembling a stained glass window, allowing sunlight to illuminate the organisms inside, akin to a church's light filtering through its windows.
McCoy became fascinated with the heart cockles after comparing their resilience to that of corals, asking, 'What on earth is going on?' regarding their ability to thrive despite rising temperatures.
Sönke Johnsen emphasizes the need for clams to provide light to their microorganisms, highlighting the ingenious adaptations clams have made to allow light to reach their symbiotic algae.
The heart cockle acts like natural fiber optic cables, cleverly allowing beneficial light to enter while blocking harmful wavelengths, showcasing a biological engineering feat predating human technology.
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