BARNACLES
'Living on the edge'
By Wim van Egmond
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BARNACLES 'Living on the edge' By Wim van Egmond |
| Visiting a tide pool is always a wonderful experience. Living in this zone between land and water is continues struggle against the forces of the ocean. One of the most interesting inhabitants of the tidal area is the barnacle. It lives in the upper zone where the water only comes at high tide. The barnacle's appearance is rather deceptive. At first glance it looks like a mollusk. It has a white shell made of calcium carbonate. But when you observe the larva of the barnacle their true nature becomes visible. |
| The first stage
of the larval development reveals that we are dealing with a
small crustacean instead of a mollusk. This so-called
Nauplius stage closely resembles the larvae of a Copepod.
You can recognize the larva of the barnacle by the two
little 'horns'.
After the Nauplius stage has lived some time swimming in the coastal plankton it undergoes a surprising transformation. |
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The Nauplius larva of a barnacle |
Cypris larva of a barnacle |
The next stage is called the
Cypris larva because it resembles a member of another
group of crustaceans, Cypris, an Ostracod, (tiny
bivalved crustacean). The remarkable aspect of the Cypris larva is that it does not eat. It is unable to take in food. What could be the advantage of that? It appears that this stage is a far more energy efficient design. One may regard it as a survival capsule. Extensive research done on the creature has proved that the energy reserves of the Cypris larva enable it to survive up to thirteen days. Within this period it has to find a suitable spot to attach itself. When the thirteen days are exceeded the larva will die. It seems an impossible task but the larva does find a way to glue itself against a surface in the tidal zone. It uses a sticky substance on one of its appendages. Not only rocks are ideal for settlement but also pieces of wood or other smooth surfaces like the shells of mussels will do. |
| Then another complete transformation
occurs. Within twelve hours after attachment it builds a
shell made of several (mostly six) plates. The rest of
its life the now adult barnacle will stay positioned
with its head down. Inside the shell the barnacle can
create a little watery environment to survive the many
hours of drought at low tide. At high tide the shell
opens and the barnacle begins to feed. Long comb-like legs are swept
backwards and forwards to catch little organisms (see top image).
Living fixed on one spot has its disadvantages. It is more difficult to find a partner to mate. The barnacle has overcome the problem in a really spectacular way. From its shell the male barnacle projects a penis so huge it is many times the size of the owner. It is simply breathtaking to see how the organ finds its way between the neighbors searching for the ideal partner. That the method is successful is proved by the number of barnacles that can be found in many tidal areas. They can be so numerous that they cover every inch of rock. The adults can be observed very easily when you put a small stone with barnacles in a small tank. The larvae can be caught from the plankton with a plankton net. |
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Comments to the author Wim van Egmond are welcomed, or visit Wim's Home page More oceanic micro organisms can be found in The Virtual Ocean All Material Copyright: © Wim van Egmond
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