Chthamalus
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| Chthamalus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A colony of Chthamalus stellatus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Thecostraca |
| Subclass: | Cirripedia |
| Order: | Balanomorpha |
| Family: | Chthamalidae |
| Genus: | Chthamalus Ranzani, 1817 [1] |
Chthamalus (χθαμαλός, "flat" or "on the ground"[2]) is a genus of barnacles that is found along almost all non-boreal coasts of the Northern Hemisphere, as well as many regions in the Southern Hemisphere. These small barnacles have been studied in part because of the taxonomic confusion over a group of species that, by and large, are morphologically and ecologically quite similar. In recent years, molecular techniques have identified a number of cryptic species that have been subsequently confirmed by taxonomists using morphological measurements.[3] Most recently the genus has been shown to be paraphyletic, with the genus Microeuraphia nested within Chthamalus.[4]
