Goose barnacles gave rise to one of the strangest of animal beliefs. The heart-shaped shell, or ââ¬Ëcapitulumââ¬â¢, is a chalky-white in colour and has black lines, which were thought to resemble the head of the barnacle goose Branta leucopsis. Because barnacle geese rarely nest in Britain no-one had ever seen their eggs or nests. It was supposed, therefore, that the geese ââ¬Ëgrew up on the planks of shipsââ¬â¢ and the birds finally emerged clothed in feathers and flew away. This curious theory also provided a convenient way round the churchââ¬â¢s ban on eating meat or flesh on Fridays. As the barnacle goose was obviously ââ¬Ånot born of the fleshââ¬Â but from a barnacle, they could be eaten not just on Fridays but throughout Lent!
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