''Megabalanus azoricus'', the Azorean barnacle, is a species of large

barnacle A barnacle is a type of arthropod constituting the subclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in erosive ...

in the family

Balanidae The Balanidae comprise a family of barnacles of the order Balanomorpha. As a result of research published in 2021 by Chan et al., the members of the family Archaeobalanidae were merged with this family. Genera These genera belong to the family B ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

Macaronesia Macaronesia (Portuguese: ''Macaronésia,'' Spanish: ''Macaronesia'') is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands ...

: the

Azores ) , motto= ( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem=( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

, the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Mo ...

, and

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

. It is the largest and third most common shallow water barnacle of the Azores, where it is heavily exploited for food and has a high commercial value since the colonization of the islands. It was included in the 100 species for priority management within Macaronesia. It is a thoracopodal filter feeder and the majority are hermaphrodites. It is more abundant in the first on the low intertidal and infralittoral rocky shores. The empty shells of the barnacles are a vital habitat for the blennies '' Parablennius ruber'', '' P. incognitus'' and ''

Coryphoblennius galerita Montagu's blenny (''Coryphoblennius galerita''), also known as the capuchin blenny, is a species of combtooth blenny found in the intertidal zones of the eastern Atlantic ocean from England to Madeira and the Canary Islands as well the Mediterra ...

'' as they provide shelter and substrata for egg deposition during reproduction. A large number of invertebrate species also use the empty shells. Although present throughout the archipelago, it is more abundant in the eastern islands. It has a genetic similarity with ''

Megabalanus tintinnabulum ''Megabalanus tintinnabulum'' is a species of large barnacle in the family Balanidae. It is the type species of the genus. The specific name comes from the Latin ' meaning a handbell and probably refers to the fact that small groups of barnacles ...

''. Some crucial features of the ''M. azoricus'' species are digonic hermaphroditism in sessile adults, development of planktotrophic larvae, dependence on exposed rocky shores in the intertidal habitat, and insular distribution restricted to the northeastern Atlantic oceanic islands.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q10328224 Barnacles Crustaceans of the Atlantic Ocean Fauna of Macaronesia Crustaceans described in 1916 Taxa named by Henry Augustus Pilsbry