The family consists of several genera adapted to survive environmental niches with extreme temperature and low pH conditions.

Certain species, like Metallosphaera prunae, have been found living on smoldering waste material from mines by utilizing a lithoautotrophic metabolism.

Several different surface appendages have been observed, including archaella in motile species, typically expressed upon starvation.

[5] Unique to Sulfolobus acidocaldarious are the archaeal adhesive pili which are important for surface attachment in biofilm formation.

These toxins may provide a competitive advantage, as they inhibit the growth of non-toxin producing strains of S. islandicus and certain other Sulfolobus species.