From the December 8, 1934, issue
By Science News
GOOSE BARNACLES EXIST, THOUGH NOT HATCHING GEESE
Sometimes enlightenment overdoes itself; in banishing a superstition, we fall victims to an equally unjustified incredulity. Thus, many persons, aware of the discrediting of the old fable about geese being produced from “goose barnacles,” think there is no such animal as a goose barnacle. They do exist, however; they are found abundantly adhering to pilings, ships’ bottoms, and other marine structures.
Their goose-shaped bodies, armored in shell, were responsible for the old belief. Actually, they are molluscs, kindred of clams and oysters, squid, and snails, though their peculiar mode of life has rendered them atypical in many respects.