A beachcomber stumbled upon an unusual find during a weekend stroll. Chevaun Hands captured an image of the peculiar ‘roll’ of seaweed and shells, in Blackpool, turning to Facebook for assistance in identifying her discovery.
Several responses confirmed that the shells were indeed gooseneck barnacles. This rare species of barnacle is considered a delicacy in countries like Portugal and Spain, but they have been known to wash up on UK beaches following storms.
In 2022, a similar-sized roll of barnacles was found on a Gwynedd beach, valued at £4,000. The Wildlife Trusts explain that barnacles are a type of crustacean, related to crabs and lobsters.
According to the Wildlife Trusts, barnacles are a type of crustacean, related to crabs and lobsters. Goose barnacles filter feed on plankton and detritus, capturing it from the water with their specially adapted legs. The creatures can be bought fresh online for around £80-£90 per kilo – or cheaper if frozen.
How to identify gooseneck barnacles
Goose barnacles are unmistakeable. They grow in dense aggregations on flotsam, with delicate chalky white shells anchored to the object with a fleshy black stalk (or peduncle). A similar species, the buoy barnacle (lepas fascicularis) floats attached to a spongy ‘buoy’ that it makes itself rather than attached to an object. The buoy barnacle is palish purple in colour.
Distribution
Goose barnacles are often washed up on west and south-west coasts of the UK, especially after storms.
Strange fact
It was once thought that barnacle geese hatched from goose barnacles. When two barnacle geese turned up in Scotland, people wondered where they had come from. No one had ever seen a barnacle goose nest or egg before. Then, when someone realised that the goose barnacle shell resembled the barnacle goose’s head, they decided that the geese must grow attached to ships and then emerge as feathered birds.
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