I think everyone has seen such a picture, a huge whale jumping high out of the sea, and then stirring up a wave of waves. But whales don't do this to please humans. Rather, it is because they have been tortured by a "sea parasite" to the point of death. This parasitic thing on whales is a barnacles.
Because the barnacles were wrapped in a calcareous shell, for a long time people mistook this guy for shellfish.
However, the real identity of barnacles is actually a crustacean. The life of barnacles goes through three stages: arthropods, glandular larvae and adults. Among them, the glandular larvae are a special form of larval, at this stage, barnacles will be completely reduced to a "house slave". In order to find a parasitic place, barnacles are almost free of food, and this desperate spirit is worth learning from humans.
Once the barnacles find a host, they quickly secrete a glue that adheres to the host's body and gradually develops into an adult worm that will accompany it for a lifetime.
So the question is, there are so many creatures in the ocean, why do we only see barnacles on whales, turtles?
This is because barnacles must meet two conditions:
First, the host swimming speed should be slow;
Second, the skin of the host should be rough enough.
Marine animals like great white sharks, dolphins and so on, they not only have smooth skin, but also swim at a speed of almost 30 kilometers per hour. This speed is difficult for barnacles to catch. In contrast, whales, turtles, which swim slower, are the ideal hosts for barnacles.
In addition to whales, turtles and other marine animals, human ships will also become a parasitic place for barnacles, once these barnacles are multiplied in large quantities, it will not only increase the weight of the ship, but also damage the structure of the ship itself, posing a serious threat to the safety of human navigation. It is precisely because of this that barnacles will be deeply hated by people.
Let's go back to the beginning of the question, why is the barnacles hated by foreigners become treasures in the eyes of Chinese?
This has to mention the title of China's "gourmet empire".
Although barnacles are not proud of their appearance, under the concept of "everything can be cooked" in the Chinese, it has not affected it from becoming a delicacy on people's tables. Barnacles are rich in protein, and their meat quality is comparable to that of oysters. However, barnacles are very dependent on seawater, and once they leave the seawater, they will become fragile and even die. It is also like this that if you want to eat barnacles, you can only go to the coastal area.
So, do you think barnacles are "angels" or "demons"?