Gooseneck Barnacle: The Goose-Looking Delicacy

Have you ever seen those grey-looking barnacles with a big long, dark, muscular stalk hanging around in the ocean intertidal zone or tide wrack? Chances are, what you saw is the Gooseneck Barnacle. As around here, they are quite common characters that can be found although we do not enjoy them as much as people in other countries and continents. Still, there are quite a lot of interesting characteristics of the Gooseneck Barnacle.

While we do not appreciate the Gooseneck Barnacle here cooked to us and served, many countries take the Gooseneck Barnacle as a delicacy; they are a favourite among the coasts of Portugal, Spain and Moroco. Basically, they are steamed in their shells above stock of seasoned wine, and served at the table, but there are many other dishes that they can be cooked at. The Gooseneck Barnacle is so popular there that people are drowned yearly trying to collect them from wave-washed coves. Gooseneck Barnacle gather on ships and thus when the ships are dry-docked, the Gooseneck Barnacle would be scraped off of the boat, and sold. This is because when the Gooseneck Barnacles attach themselves to the hull of the ship they will increase the vessel's drag which is why they must be removed.

The Gooseneck Barnacle is not an easy creature to remove though from their own habitat which is a reason why they cause so much trouble. As they mature, the Gooseneck Barnacle will permanently attach themselves to their habitat with their own glue. This glue is one of the strongest adhesive ever known to man because it can withstand tough waves and fast currents.

Long ago, there was a myth that the Gooseneck Barnacle would morph into the Barnacle geese, which is a specie of goose and not a barnacle, as the young of the geese were never seen. Also, the Gooseneck Barnacle had the same basic shape and color of the geese, and thus was thought to be identical. Because of this, the Gooseneck Barnacle would be scraped off and even eaten on days that their religions said that meat was not allowed to be eaten except for foul.

Gooseneck Barnacles depend on water motion for feeding rather than the movement of their cirri; however, they do have 6 pairs of cirri. Gooseneck Barnacles are quite well-prepared when it comes down to reproduction. They are hermaphroditic meaning that they have both male and female sex organs. On top of that, they produce around 475 000 to 950 000 embryos every season! Think about the possibilities of reproduction!

The Gooseneck Barnacles are definitely an interesting creature to learn about because of their own different aspects and survival tactics. They have quite an interesting bond with us as well!