Barnacles

Room 1 has been learning about barnacles and we were very excited to see some barnacles when we visited Island Bay. I heard more than one student telling the staff at the Marine Education Centre what they had learnt.
Here is a report about barnacles that we wrote as a class.

Barnacles

Barnacles are white, grey or brown. You might have seen them on the rocks at the beach. They also live on shellfish, boats, wharves, and even on whales. Even though they don’t look interesting, they are razor sharp. If you slip or fall on them you could get a nasty cut. 


Did you know barnacles are crustaceans? They are related to crabs, shrimps, and lobsters.

Here are some barnacles we saw at Island Bay

How do barnacles live?

You might think that barnacles look nothing like crabs and lobsters, but when they hatch baby barnacles look just like crabs. 

A barnacle larvae

When the barnacles become adults they glue themselves onto rocks. The glue they use is one of the strongest in the natural world. They then build walls around themselves for protection. Barnacles live in groups or colonies.

Barnacles eat plankton. They scoop up their food with their feathery legs.

Barnacle Enemies

Barnacles have many predators including sea stars, fish, birds, and sea snails. They have no defence against pollution especially oil spills.

By Room 1 

Here is a video we found that shows barnacles feeding.