ABSTRACT

The ancient history of the Balanidae is a brief one. No secondary species has hitherto been discovered. The existence of a cretaceous Verruca is an apparent exception to the rule, as this genus has hitherto always been ranked among sessile cirripedes. Generally, the extinct forms belong to the section, which has the parietes not permeated by pores. During the miocene and pliocene ages, sessile cirripedes abounded. No extinct genus in this family has hitherto been discovered. Balanus is the oldest genus as yet known; it first appeared in Europe and North America, during the deposition of the eocene beds; and was at that time, as far as our information at present serves, represented by very few species. In South America, one species of Balanus abounds in individuals in the ancient Patagonian tertiary formation. The fossil species have been already published by the Palaeontographical Society.