Ephemeral-substrate-specialist
Guides
Lepas anserifera
Goose Barnacle
Lepas anserifera is a pedunculate barnacle that attaches to floating substrates including driftwood, ships' hulls, and marine debris. It possesses a capitulum of six white calcareous plates supported by an orange, flexible stalk. The species exhibits rapid growth and early maturation, with individuals reaching reproductive size within approximately two weeks under favorable conditions. As a hermaphroditic filter feeder, it plays a role in marine neustonic communities and has a cosmopolitan distribution in temperate and tropical seas.