Barnacles are arthropods of the subclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea. They are related to crabs and lobsters, with similar nauplius larvae. Barnacles are exclusively marine invertebrates; many species live in shallow and tidal waters. Some 2,100 species have been described.
Goose barnacles, also called percebes or turtle-claw barnacles or stalked barnacles or gooseneck barnacles, are filter-feeding crustaceans that live attached to hard surfaces of rocks and flotsam in the ocean intertidal zone. Goose barnacles formerly made up the taxonomic order Pedunculata, but the group has been found to be polyphyletic, with its members scattered across multiple orders of the infraclass Thoracica.
Acorn barnacle and acorn shell are vernacular names for certain types of stalkless barnacles, generally excluding stalked or gooseneck barnacles. As adults they are typically cone-shaped, symmetrical, and attached to rocks or other fixed objects in the ocean. Members of the barnacle order Balanomorpha are often called acorn barnacles.
Sessilia is an unranked clade of barnacles, comprising the barnacles without stalks, or acorn barnacles. They form a monophyletic group and are probably derived from stalked or goose barnacles. Sessilia is divided into two orders. The Verrucomorpha contain two families, Verrucidae and Neoverrucidae, and the remaining 14 families are in the order Balanomorpha.
The Balanomorpha are an order of barnacles, containing familiar acorn barnacles of the seashore. The order contains these families:
Seashore wildlife habitats exist from the Tropics to the Arctic and Antarctic. Seashores and beaches provide varied habitats in different parts of the world, and even within the same beach. Phytoplankton is at the bottom of some food chains, while zooplankton and other organisms eat phytoplankton. Kelp is also autotrophic and at the bottom of many food chains. Coastal areas are stressed through rapid changes, for example due to tides.
Lottia subrugosa is a species of sea snail, a true limpet, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Lottiidae. It is still designated under its synonyms Acmaea subrugosa or Collisella subrugosa in many textbooks.
The Chthamaloidea are a subdivision of Balanomorpha proposed by Newman and Ross to include barnacles with shell wall composed of rostrum, carina, and one to three pairs of latera, rarely supplemented with one or more whorls of basal imbricating plates. The rostrolatus enters the sheath, but rarely fuses with the rostrum, as in the three higher superfamilies. Shell plates are simple in construction, solid, and incorporate organic chitin between carbonate layers. Opercular plates are deeply interlocked, and in some genera, may become concrescent with age. Soft part morphology includes concave labrum without notch in the central part. Cirrus III more resembles Cirrus IV than II, or may be intermediate in structure. Caudal appendages present in some species.
Catophragmus is the originally named genus of the family Catophragmidae. At present, it is monotypical. It is a shallow water acorn barnacle of the Tropical Western Atlantic and Caribbean characterized by small accessory imbricating plates surrounding the base of the shell wall.
Tetraclita is a genus of sessile barnacles in the family Tetraclitidae. There are more than 20 described species in Tetraclita.
Tetraclitidae is a family of sessile barnacles in the order Balanomorpha. There are about 10 genera and more than 50 described species in Tetraclitidae.
Tetraclita rubescens, commonly known as the pink volcano barnacle, is a species of sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae.
Pachylasmatidae is a family of symmetrical sessile barnacles in the order Balanomorpha. There are about 10 genera and at least 30 described species in Pachylasmatidae.
Epopella is a genus of symmetrical sessile barnacles in the family Tetraclitidae. There are about six described species in Epopella.
Tetraclita serrata, the grey volcano barnacle, is a species of symmetrical sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae. It is found in Africa.
Tetraclita squamosa, the green volcano barnacle, is a species of symmetrical sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae.
Tetraclita japonica, the Japanese volcano barnacle, Kurofujitsubo, is a species of symmetrical sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae.
Tetraclita rufotincta is a species of symmetrical sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae.
