Balanus nubilus
{{Short description|Species of barnacle}}
{{Redirect|Giant barnacle|the species from Argentina, Chile and Peru|Austromegabalanus psittacus}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Giant Acorn Barnacle, Morro Bay, CA, USA imported from iNaturalist photo 254509873.jpg
| image_caption = Giant acorn barnacles with cirri extended for feeding
| genus = Balanus
| species = nubilus
| authority = Darwin, 1854{{cite book|last1=Darwin|first1=Charles|title=A monograph on the sub-class Cirripedia, with figures of all the species|date=1854|publisher=Ray Society|location=London|volume=2|chapter-url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2006662|pages=253–254|chapter=Balanus nubilus}}{{ITIS |id=656266 |taxon=Balanus nubilus Darwin, 1854 |accessdate=June 14, 2011}}
}}
Balanus nubilus, commonly called the giant acorn barnacle, is the world's largest barnacle, reaching a diameter of {{cvt|15|cm|0}} and a height of up to {{cvt|30|cm}},{{Cite web |url=http://www.wavelengthmagazine.com/1997/fm97view.html |title=View from on top: mine's bigger than yours! |last=Richard |first=Martin |year=1997 |website=WaveLength Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303171454/http://www.wavelengthmagazine.com/1997/fm97view.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead |access-date=April 18, 2018}} and containing the largest known muscle fibres.{{cite journal |journal=Science |year=1963 |volume=139 |issue=3549 |pages=49–50 |doi=10.1126/science.139.3549.49 |title=Giant muscle fibers in a barnacle, Balanus nubilus Darwin |author=Graham Hoyle & Thomas Smyth Jr. |pmid=17752025|s2cid=11926059 }}
Classification
Balanus nubilus was named by Charles Darwin, who described its appearance and noted its habitat. He wrote that the barnacles were found on rotting wood and were associated with Balanus glandula. Darwin said the barnacles were "very distinct" but thought that the species allied with Balanus balanus more closely "than to any other species", and also allied with B. cariosus.
Ecology
Balanus nubilus is a northeast Pacific species that ranges from southern Alaska to Baja California.{{cite web | author=Cowles, D. | year=2006 | title=Balanus nubilus Darwin, 1854 | url=https://inverts.wallawalla.edu/Arthropoda/Crustacea/Maxillopoda/Cirripedia/Balanus_nubilus.html | publisher=Walla Walla University | accessdate=12 October 2018 }} It is frequently found growing on rocks, pier pilings and hard-shelled animals at depths of up to {{cvt|90|m}}.{{cite web |url=http://www.racerocks.com/racerock/eco/taxalab/bio2002/balanusn.htm |title=Balanus nubilus |work=The Race Rocks taxonomy |publisher=Race Rocks Ecological Reserve / Marine Protected Area |accessdate=December 31, 2009 |date=December 2002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100816092559/http://www.racerocks.com/racerock/eco/taxalab/bio2002/balanusn.htm |archive-date=August 16, 2010 |url-status=dead }} Like other acorn barnacles, B. nubilus is a filter feeder; it, in turn, is sometimes eaten by sea otters,{{cite web |url=http://seanet.stanford.edu/Crustacea/index.html |title=Phylum Arthropoda, Subph. Crustacea: Subtidal Barnacles, Crabs, Shrimp, & Kin |work=SeaNet: Common Marine Organisms of Monterey Bay, California |author=James M. Watanabe |date=October 10, 2009 |access-date=December 31, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171102181051/http://seanet.stanford.edu/Crustacea/index.html |archive-date=November 2, 2017 |url-status=dead }} sea stars, crabs{{cite web |url=http://www.pugetsoundsealife.com/habitats+sealife/Giant_Acorn_Barnacle.html |title=Giant acorn barnacle Balanus nubilus |work=Tour Puget Sound habitats and marine life |author=David W. Jamison |accessdate=December 31, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611084033/http://www.pugetsoundsealife.com/habitats+sealife/Giant_Acorn_Barnacle.html |archive-date=June 11, 2010 |url-status=dead }} and the Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest.{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.britannica.com/facts/5/409474/Balanus-nubilus-as-discussed-in-cirripede-crustacean |title=Facts about Balanus nubilus: edibility, as discussed in cirripede (crustacean): Importance to humans |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |accessdate=December 31, 2009}} Abandoned shells of B. nubilus are used by the crab Glebocarcinus oregonensis for shelter.{{cite web |url=http://www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/collections/paleontology/marine/crabs.php |title=Marine Fossils and their Living Relatives |publisher=Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture |accessdate=December 31, 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100211145027/http://www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/collections/paleontology/marine/crabs.php |archivedate=11 February 2010 |url-status=dead }}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q4300190}}
Category:Crustaceans of the eastern Pacific Ocean
Category:Crustaceans described in 1854
Category:Taxa named by Charles Darwin
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