[ 8 54 ] 
food. But it frequently happens, that the animals 
of the Sea-fans deftroy thefe Barnacles, by overrun- 
ning and involving them in the very center of their 
flems. Thefe fmall Barnacles, interfperfed here and 
there on the brandies, have been taken for fruit or 
berries by fome gentlemen, who look upon the in- 
ternal or horny part of the Sea- fans to be vegetables. 
/'/g\ 20. is a very curious Barnacle, taken from an 
elegant fpecimen in the Britifh Mufeum ; which, 
from its figure, I have called the Perfian Crown. 
I fhall now add fome further obfervations on the 
nature of thefe animals. 
Upon opening the fhells of many of the common 
Engl fill Barnacles (Fig. I.) while they were alive, 
I found the lower part of the fhell, which contained 
a cavity equal to two thirds of the whole, full of 
fpawn ; fio that the Barnacles, which adhere by the 
bafe of their fhells, as well as thofe that are fupported 
by flefhy tubes, are propagated by egg?, which they 
lend foi th in inconceivable numbeisj as appears by 
the clutters of young fhells, which we find adhering 
not only to the parent animals, but to all hard fu fi- 
nances near them. 
The bottom fhell of thefe animals, as well as 
their upper fhells, vary in form according to their 
fituation, which occalions fome difficulty in deter- 
mining their fever al fpecies with exa&nefs. The 
form of the bafe fhell of our common Englifh Bar- 
nacle, is the flat radiated figure reprefented adhering 
to a fcallop fhell in the front of a group of them at 
i ' 1 7 ' A he Barnacles at frig. 8 , g, jq, iy. and 
20. have the fame kind ofbafe. 
% 
7 
I have 
