Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 May 2009
Previous work on barnacle biometry has mainly been concerned with the opercular valves, whose shape is often an important taxonomic character (Barnes & Healy, 1969; Henry & McLaughlin, 1975). The well-known change in shape whereby columnar individuals are produced as a result of crowding has also been described by many workers (e.g. Trusheim, 1932; Barnes & Powell, 1950; Subklew, 1969; Crisp & Bourget, 1985). The influence of environmental variables on the shape of the barnacle shell as a whole has been little studied.