Tesseropora rosea, the rose barnacle, is a species of barnacle found in Australia, South Africa, and Indonesia, where they inhabit exposed, wave-broken rocks and littoral areas. They feed primarily on zooplankton and extend their cirri only when the current is strong. Their shells, usually around 2 centimetres (0.79 in) in diameter, are made of four plates and turn pink as they age.
| Rose barnacle | |
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| at Bawley Point, Australia | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Thecostraca |
| Subclass: | Cirripedia |
| Order: | Balanomorpha |
| Family: | Tetraclitidae |
| Genus: | Tesseropora |
| Species: | T. rosea
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| Binomial name | |
| Tesseropora rosea Krauss 1848
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| Synonyms[1] | |
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Description
editRose barnacles have a steep, conical shell with an outer wall made up of four plates. The calcerous base of shell is usually around 1.9 centimetres (0.75 in) in diameter but may exceed 2.5 centimetres (0.98 in); the barnacles typically grow 1.3 centimetres (0.51 in) tall.[2]: 366 The central triangle-shaped portions of these plates are called parietes – which in this species have each a single row of large, square pores or tubes.[1][2]: 353 & 366 The colour of the shell among younger barnacles is pale grey, but the shell pinkens as it ages.[3] The shell is covered with purplish lines.[1] The opened top part of the barnacle shell, which connects to the outside, is called the orifice. It can be closed by the operculum, which comprises two small shells, known as the tergum and the scutum, divided by a small linear opening; this acts as something of a lid for the barnacle.[2]: 352–3 The orifice of rose barnacles is usually pentagonal, but is often much eroded, and may appear quadrilateral or triangular. Similarly, the outsides barnacles' opercular valves often face erosion. Both valves are thick and solid, and have visible ridges and furrows on them.[2]: 366 The size of the orifice ranges from 2.3 to 7.8 mm (0.091 to 0.307 in) across.[1]
Habitat and distribution
editTheir habitat is exposed rocky shores, from high tide levels to a depth of 58 metres; the barnacles are able to tolerate strong wave activity.[4][5] They attach to stones and shells. In Australia, the rose barnacle is common in Sydney Harbour and is abundant on the east coast in New South Wales and Queensland, between the 19th and 38th parallels south, as well as around Lord Howe Island, the isolated Kermadecs.[2]: 366 [1] On the continent's west coast, it is found in the Fremantle area and from Albany, where it may have been introduced through ballast water transfer.[6]: 665 [7] The species, however, was originally described from South Africa's Algoa Bay. In Indonesia, they are known from the islands of Ambon and Saparua.[1]
Diet
editRose barnacles feed on zooplankton, mostly small crustaceans such as copepods, but also barnacle nauplii, diatoms, and algae.[8]: 649 They extend and spread their cirri to feed only during periods of strong current, and thus cannot not live in calm-water areas.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g Pitriana, Pipit; Valente, Luis; Rintelen, Thomas von; Jones, Diana S.; Prabowo, Romanus E.; Rintelen, Kristina von (2020-07-03). "An annotated checklist and integrative biodiversity discovery of barnacles (Crustacea, Cirripedia) from the Moluccas, East Indonesia". ZooKeys. 945: 17–83. doi:10.3897/zookeys.945.39044. ISSN 1313-2970. PMC 7351798.
- ^ a b c d e Pope, E. C. (1945-06-25). "A simplified key to the sessile barnacles found on the rocks, boats, wharf piles and other installations in Port Jackson and adjacent waters". Records of the Australian Museum. 21 (6): 351–372. doi:10.3853/j.0067-1975.21.1945.550. ISSN 0067-1975.
- ^ "Tesseropora rosea". Museums Victoria Collections. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
- ^ "Tesseropora rosea". Atlas of Living Australia. Archived from the original on 9 Aug 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
- ^ "Tesseropora rosea". Museum of Tropical Queensland. Archived from the original on 23 Mar 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
- ^ Jones, Diana S. (1990). "Occurrence of the Barnacle Tesseropora rosea (Krauss) (Thoracia, Balanomorpha, Tetraclitidae) in Western Australian Waters". Records of the Western Australian Museum. 14 (4). Retrieved 2025-01-03.
- ^ Huisman, John M.; Jones, Diana S.; Wells, Fred E.; Burton, Timothy (2008). "Introduced marine biota in Western Australian waters". Records of the Western Australian Museum. 25: 23.
- ^ Anderson, D. T.; Buckle, J. (1983-07-01). "Cirral Activity and Feeding in the Coronuloid Barnacles Tesseropora Rosea (Krauss) and Tetraclitella Purpurascens (Wood) (Tetraclitidae)". Bulletin of Marine Science. 33 (3): 645–655.
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