Intertidal Invertebrates of the Monterey Bay Area, California

Compiled & photographed by Gary McDonald, Long Marine Laboratory, University of California, Santa Cruz
Pollicipes polymerus Sowerby, 1833
Leaf Barnacle
Arthropoda: Crustacea: Maxillopoda: Thecostraca: Cirripedia: Thoracica: Pedunculata: Scalpellomorpha: Pollicipedidae
Geographic Range: British Columbia, Canada to Punta Abreojos, Baja California, Mexico. Synonyms: Mitella polymerus
Back to: Cirripedia        Back to: Systematic Index Back to: Intertidal Invertebrates of the Monterey Bay Area
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Carmel Pt., Monterey Co., CA; 16 Feb 2008.

Description: Capitular plates whitish to greyish-white, more than 5 in number and surrounded basally by smaller imbricating plates. Attached to the substrate by tough peduncle which has a rough texture.

Size: Live in large clusters, the individuals may be up to 8 cm in length.

Notes: Common in the middle intertidal zone on rocky shores, often found with the mussel Mytilus californianus.
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Carmel Pt., Monterey Co., CA; 25 Nov 2007.		 Pollicipes_polymerus_0007.jpg
Carmel Pt., Monterey Co., CA; 16 Feb 2008.
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Carmel Pt., Monterey Co., CA; 28 Jan 2010.		 Pollicipes_polymerus_slide_001.jpg
Monterey Bay, CA; Mar 1997.
Pollicipes_polymerus_0010.jpgDavenport Landing, Santa Cruz Co., CA; 24 Mar 2010. Pollicipes_polymerus_0011.jpg
Davenport Landing, Santa Cruz Co., CA; 24 Mar 2010.

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