Gooseneck Barnacles

Today was a field day.  We spent the day at the beach with homeschooling peeps and it was a good time for all.

We always seem to find something new when we go out.  Today's find?

Gooseneck Barnacles and a crab with orange eggs on her underside.

Another find?  Mosquito larva in some standing water on our porch.  My seven year old came running in "Mom! Mom!  There's minnows or something in this water!"

Yes, there was something, but it was not minnows . . .wouldn't THAT have been a scientific puzzle?

Here's just some of what we learned about Gooseneck Barnacles:

~The barnacle has been described as a shrimplike animal standing on its head in a limestone house and kicking food into its mouth with its feet. 


~They breathe through their legs ( cirri) and body wall


~Some attach themselves to living animals like porpoises, whales and turtles


( The above information was taken from "barnacle." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (November 16, 2010).http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-barnacle.html)


And here's a picture, taken from the same site:

Of course, what we were looking at was not so neatly labeled, but this is what they looked like.

Be well, all, and thanks for reading!


~ Jenn