Stalked Barnacle Research Articles

Two observations of acorn barnacles attached to GLS loggers on seabirds in the North Atlantic

Two observations of acorn barnacles attached to GLS loggers on seabirds in the North Atlantic

Lepas Lalandii sp. Nov: A Goose Barnacle (Crustacea) Species from DNA Barcoding

We analysed DNA based phylogenetic relationships of selected species of pedunculated barnacles, using species from the genus Chthamalus (order: Balanomorpha) as outgroup, to estimate the position of a new species of goose barnacle. Ninetythree individuals from 17 ingroups (including seven genera) and five outgroup species were studied. The pedunculated species included taxa from the order Scalpellomorpha a) superfamily: Lepadoidea (family Lepadidae; genera Conchoderma, Dosima, Lepas and family: Poecilasmatidae; genera Octolasmis and Poecilasma), and b) order Pollicipedomorpha (family: Pollicipedidae; genera Capitilum and Pollicipes). As the ingroup members represent a polyphyletic assemblage, our analysis was limited to estimating the status and the genetic relationship of the new species. We show that Lepas lalandii sp. nov. is monophyletic and a member of the Lepadidae, but separated from other Lepas. Full descriptions of Lepas lalandii sp. nov. will follow detailed morphological studies. This is conceivably the most extensive dataset for the individuals studied.

The Quantitative Proteome of the Cement and Adhesive Gland of the Pedunculate Barnacle, Pollicipes pollicipes.

Adhesive secretion has a fundamental role in barnacles’ survival, keeping them in an adequate position on the substrate under a variety of hydrologic regimes. It arouses special interest for industrial applications, such as antifouling strategies, underwater industrial and surgical glues, and dental composites. This study was focused on the goose barnacle Pollicipes pollicipes adhesion system, a species that lives in the Eastern Atlantic strongly exposed intertidal rocky shores and cliffs. The protein composition of P. pollicipes cement multicomplex and cement gland was quantitatively studied using a label-free LC-MS high-throughput proteomic analysis, searched against a custom transcriptome-derived database. Overall, 11,755 peptide sequences were identified in the gland while 2880 peptide sequences were detected in the cement, clustered in 1616 and 1568 protein groups, respectively. The gland proteome was dominated by proteins of the muscle, cytoskeleton, and some uncharacterized proteins, while the cement was, for the first time, reported to be composed by nearly 50% of proteins that are not canonical cement proteins, mainly unannotated proteins, chemical cues, and protease inhibitors, among others. Bulk adhesive proteins accounted for one-third of the cement proteome, with CP52k being the most abundant. Some unannotated proteins highly expressed in the proteomes, as well as at the transcriptomic level, showed similar physicochemical properties to the known surface-coupling barnacle adhesive proteins while the function of the others remains to be discovered. New quantitative and qualitative clues are provided to understand the diversity and function of proteins in the cement of stalked barnacles, contributing to the whole adhesion model in Cirripedia.

Shift of Feeding Mode in an Epizoic Stalked Barnacle Inducing Gall Formation of Host Sea Urchin.

SummaryAmong diverse stalked barnacles, Rugilepas pearsei (Thoracica: Cirripedia: Arthropoda) is a rare unique species that is associated with echinoids and has highly atrophied cirri. We rediscovered the barnacle for the first time from description and verified that the barnacles live obligately in half-open galls formed on the test of the sea urchin Echinothrix diadema (Diadematidae: Echinodermata). A molecular phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that the obligate association with echinoids derived from epizoic life on crustaceans. A stable isotope analysis suggests that the barnacle feeds on particulate organic matter (POM) without parasitizing the host echinoids. These findings suggest that the host shift caused losses of plates and feather-like cirri, changes in the attachment device from cementation to anchoring, and a shift in feeding mode from filter feeding to POM collection. The barnacle's epizoic, superficially sub-endozoic, communal life in stout but narrow galls causes repetitive reproduction at the cost of reduced growth.

A trawl survey of seafloor macrolitter on the South African continental shelf

Demersal trawls provide an index of seafloor macrolitter abundance, but there are no published data from sub-Saharan Africa. We collected litter items from 235 trawls conducted to assess fish abundance off South Africa. Only 17% of trawls contained litter (3.4 items·km−2, 2.1 kg·km−2 but only 0.2 kg·km−2 excluding four megalitter items). Plastic items predominated (88%), of which 77% floated once cleaned of epibionts. One LDPE bag manufactured three months before being caught carried pelagic goose barnacles Lepas anserifera, confirming that biofouling leads to rapid sinking of floating plastics. Fishery/shipping wastes comprised 22% of litter items (98% by mass; 73% excluding megalitter items); the remainder was general waste – mostly packaging or other single-use items – that could come from land- or ship-based sources. Litter was more abundant in deep water close to Cape Town. The annual demersal trawl survey is a useful way to monitor seafloor litter off South Africa.

Stalked barnacles on an adult male sub-Antarctic fur seal at Inaccessible Island, Tristan da Cunha

An adult male sub-Antarctic fur seal, Arctocephalus tropicalis, on Inaccessible Island in the Tristan da Cunha archipelago (TdC), was observed infested with goose barnacles, likely Lepas australis. Although adult females have been recorded to carry goose barnacles, this is the first record from an adult male at a breeding island. Males remain at sea throughout winter, so it is not clear why there are not more records of goose barnacles attached to their pelage.

The PERCEBES project: science for the spatial management of the stalked barnacle fishery in the Atlantic Arc

The PERCEBES project: science for the spatial management of the stalked barnacle fishery in the Atlantic Arc

Socioecological changes in data-poor S-fisheries: A hidden shellfisheries crisis in Galicia (NW Spain)

We combined different data sources to analyse key changes in the shellfisheries of Galicia (NW Spain). The shellfishing capacity of this region, a major fishing power in Europe, has been severely reduced in recent decades. The number of vessels has fallen by 13%, vessel length, capacity and engine power have decreased by 10%, 7% and 3%, respectively, while the number of on-foot shellfishers has halved. Landings and sale value of shellfish species have declined in the last decade by 16% and by 13%, respectively. This decline follows a period of recovery from the mid-1980s, when coastal fishery management were transferred from the Spanish to the regional government. Production of local clam species has been progressively abandoned in favour of the foreign Japanese carpet shell Ruditapes philippinarum, leading to losses in sales value and increasing market risks. Overfishing, poaching, degradation of habitats, pollution, disease outbreaks and ocean warming may be responsible for the drop in landings and sales value of key species like edible cockle Cerastoderma edule and Atlantic goose barnacle Pollicipes pollicipes. Despite the development of new fisheries, e.g. algae, anemone and polychaete harvesting, the overall declining trend has important socioecological implications for Galician society, because of the traditional link between shellfishing and coastal communities. The socioecological sustainability of this sector requires policies to be developed by the regional government regarding the support of multidisciplinary research and surveillance, increase control over pollution and poaching, a greater focus on the production of native species and the strengthening of co-management frameworks.

Beach litter and woody-debris colonizers on the Atlantico department Caribbean coastline, Colombia

Some marine invertebrates can inhabit floating substrates, and raft over long distances, becoming a significant environmental problem in terms of alien species and habitat disruption. On the Atlantico Department beaches (Colombia) woody debris and plastic litter dominate (86%) the types of refuse on the beaches with their densities ranging from 0.82–1.72 items m−1. Such litter and woody debris generate the optimal conditions for floating colonizers. In this work, 26 beaches were surveyed, and 16 of them (62%) were found to have marine fauna using litter and woody debris as a substrate for potential rafting and dispersal. Serpulidae polychaete tubes, goose barnacles Lepas (Anatifa) anserifera Linnaeus, 1767, and the bryozoans Arbopercula tenella (Hincks, 1880), Arbopercula angulata (Levinsen, 1909), plus three unidentified species were found colonizing woody debris, seeds, plastic and glass bottles. These findings of woody debris and litter facilitating the arrival and dispersal of non-native species on this coast, demonstrate that preventive management of such refuse in coastal habitats goes beyond simply preserving coastal esthetics.

Anthropogenic marine litter composition in coastal areas may be a predictor of potentially invasive rafting fauna.

Anthropogenic plastic pollution is a global problem. In the marine environment, one of its less studied effects is the transport of attached biota, which might lead to introductions of non-native species in new areas or aid in habitat expansions of invasive species. The goal of the present work was to assess if the material composition of beached anthropogenic litter is indicative of the rafting fauna in a coastal area and could thus be used as a simple and cost-efficient tool for risk assessment in the future. Beached anthropogenic litter and attached biota along the 200 km coastline of Asturias, central Bay of Biscay, Spain, were analysed. The macrobiotic community attached to fouled litter items was identified using genetic barcoding combined with visual taxonomic analysis, and compared between hard plastics, foams, other plastics and non-plastic items. On the other hand, the material composition of beached litter was analysed in a standardized area on each beach. From these two datasets, the expected frequency of several rafting taxa was calculated for the coastal area and compared to the actually observed frequencies. The results showed that plastics were the most abundant type of beached litter. Litter accumulation was likely driven by coastal sources (industry, ports) and river/sewage inputs and transported by near-shore currents. Rafting vectors were almost exclusively made up of plastics and could mainly be attributed to fishing activity and leisure/ household. We identified a variety of rafting biota, including species of goose barnacles, acorn barnacles, bivalves, gastropods, polychaetes and bryozoan, and hydrozoan colonies attached to stranded litter. Several of these species were non-native and invasive, such as the giant Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) and the Australian barnacle (Austrominius modestus). The composition of attached fauna varied strongly between litter items of different materials. Plastics, except for foam, had a much more diverse attached community than non-plastic materials. The predicted frequency of several taxa attached to beached litter significantly correlated with the actually observed frequencies. Therefore we suggest that the composition of stranded litter on a beach or an area could allow for predictions about the corresponding attached biotic community, including invasive species.

Growth and population dynamic of crustacean cirriped Pollicipes pollicipes, in the Moroccan Atlantic Coast

Event Abstract Back to Event Growth and population dynamic of crustacean cirriped Pollicipes pollicipes, in the Moroccan Atlantic Coast Hajar BOURASSI1, 2*, Hakima ZIDANE2, Imane HADDI2, 3, Najib CHAROUKI2 and Ahmed YAHYAOUI1 1 Faculty of science, Mohammed V university, biology, Morocco 2 Institut National de Recherche Halieutique (INRH), Department of fishery, Morocco 3 Faculty of science, University Hassan II, Geology, Morocco The fisheries environment has been subject of increasing pressure of the industrial and human activities, whose effects were quickly felt in many species that are considered as biological indicators of value and information such as some cirripeds crustaceans: Pollicipes pollicipes (Goose barnacle). Those represent important coastal resources for population livelihoods and coastal ecosystems. Yet, they are informally exploited despite several ministerial decrees that regulate their exploitation. Which involves various scientific studies to support the implementation of a development plan. Goose barnacles live on wave-beaten rocky substrates in the intertidal and low-shore zones on the coasts. Those zones are more susceptible to be affected by phenomenon such as temperature increase and the raise of sea level caused by the climate change. Accordingly, considering the current concern for the conservation of the coastal resources, we carried out a monthly monitoring program, within our larger scale study on the population dynamic of P. pollicipes, all along the year 2016-2017: during the harvesting season and biological recovery period, at two exploitable areas: Mansouria and Souiria Kdima. This present work is about the study of population size structure, density and biomass of the different populations. The results obtained show that goose barnacle’s abundance and biomass differs between the seasons and from one site to another due to the biotope features: the density of Mansouria’s population is over 50% higher than Souiria Kdima’s. The results show also that the mean RC size is about 16.78 mm in Mansouria while it’s 15.32 mm in Souiria Kdima. Keywords: Pollicipes pollicipes, density, biomass, Intertidal biodiversity, Growth, Population Dynamics Conference: IMMR'18 | International Meeting on Marine Research 2018, Peniche, Portugal, 5 Jul - 6 Jul, 2018. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation Topic: Biodiversity, Conservation and Coastal Management Citation: BOURASSI H, ZIDANE H, HADDI I, CHAROUKI N and YAHYAOUI A (2019). Growth and population dynamic of crustacean cirriped Pollicipes pollicipes, in the Moroccan Atlantic Coast. Front. Mar. Sci. Conference Abstract: IMMR'18 | International Meeting on Marine Research 2018. doi: 10.3389/conf.FMARS.2018.06.00070 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 27 Apr 2018; Published Online: 07 Jan 2019. * Correspondence: PhD. Hajar BOURASSI, Faculty of science, Mohammed V university, biology, Rabat, Morocco, Hajar.bourassi@gmail.com Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Hajar BOURASSI Hakima ZIDANE Imane HADDI Najib CHAROUKI Ahmed YAHYAOUI Google Hajar BOURASSI Hakima ZIDANE Imane HADDI Najib CHAROUKI Ahmed YAHYAOUI Google Scholar Hajar BOURASSI Hakima ZIDANE Imane HADDI Najib CHAROUKI Ahmed YAHYAOUI PubMed Hajar BOURASSI Hakima ZIDANE Imane HADDI Najib CHAROUKI Ahmed YAHYAOUI Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.

Assessing resource use patterns of Mediterranean loggerhead sea turtles Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) through stable isotope analysis

Stable isotope analysis is a useful tool for studying the ecology of marine consumers, as carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope ratios may reflect individuals’ patterns of diet and habitat use. Knowledge of foraging strategies has significant implications for the conservation of endangered loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758). In this study, δ13C and δ15N isotope data were used to assess resource use patterns of the Mediterranean loggerhead turtles (Aeolian Archipelago, Southern Italy). δ13C and δ15N values from carapace scutes of 54 loggerheads of different curved carapace length (CCL) and health status were compared with those of eight potential prey items (benthic, pelagic and fishery discards). MixSIAR results suggested that pelagic prey (from goose barnacles to planktivorous fish) comprised most of loggerheads’ diet, with small variations (i.e. benthic prey or fishery discards) depending on size (δ13C and δ15N) and health (δ15N) of individuals. δ13C variations with turtles’ size might reflect changes in dietary habitats during life stages. However, the loggerhead turtles and their main source of prey (pelagic prey) had a higher variation in values of δ15N compared to δ13C. This suggested that smaller-sized turtles might preferentially feed on pelagic prey in oceanic habitats and then, as they reach a larger size, gradually enter neritic waters, including in their diet prey sources with higher δ13C and δ15N. Some turtles foraging on longline baits/debris also displayed a marked increase in δ15N. These δ15N variations might be explained by differences in diet (trophic differences) and somatic growth rates among individuals, or dietary dilution.

Large kelp-rafted rocks as potential dropstones in the Southern Ocean

Cyclonic winds in April 2017 forced oceanic kelp rafts onshore in southeastern New Zealand, providing a ‘snapshot’ of ongoing kelp-rock transport. About 10% of observed southern bull kelp (Durvillaea antarctica) holdfasts contain substantial remnants of their original rocky substrates. The largest rock weighs ~7kg, and was derived from the Mesozoic sedimentary Murihiku Terrane of southern New Zealand, >100km from the beach where it was deposited. Several other rafted rocks were derived from the same general source area, including a conglomerate clast with 10cm igneous cobbles. Genetic sequencing of the kelp specimens confirmed their southern New Zealand derivation, which is distinct from sub-Antarctic or northern New Zealand clades. The floating rocks had been colonised by goose barnacles (Lepas australis), the largest of which were approximately 5mm long, implying that the rocks had been floating for approximately 16days before being blown ashore. The rocks may have travelled up to 200km in that time in a northeasterly directed ocean current that flows at 10–15km/day. If these rock-bearing kelp rafts had not been blown ashore in the cyclonic weather event, they would likely have continued to travel northeast in the Subtropical Front zone where they would likely have been deposited as dropstones. Abundant dropstones noted on the nearby Chatham Rise and Campbell Plateau, have previously been assumed to have been ice-rafted. A component of these dropstones could have been derived by kelp rafting, especially on the Chatham Rise, where the Subtropical Front is deflected east. A thick weathering rind, and remnant organic veneer, if present, along with clast provenance, may be the best distinguishing features of kelp-rafted dropstones compared to ice-rafted dropstones.

Pollicipes pollicipes as a Biomonitor of PAHs Contamination in Seawaters of the Northwest Coast of Portugal

ABSTRACTSimple, fast, and economic solid phase microextration–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (SPME–GC–MS) methods were validated for the determination of 8 United States Environmental Protection Agency priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs: naphthalene, acenaphthylene, acenaphthene, fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene and pyrene) in coastal seawaters and soft tissues of goose barnacles Pollicipes pollicipes. Under the optimized conditions, the limits of detection ranged from 0.012 to 1.069 ng L−1 and 0.002 to 0.061 µg kg−1 (dry weight basis) for seawaters and soft tissues, respectively. Precision varied between 3.9% and 20.0% for seawaters and between 8.4% and 19.1% for soft tissues, which are acceptable repeatabilities for environmental analyses. Finally, the accuracy of the optimized conditions also showed suitable recoveries, varying between 81.5% and 105.5% in spiked seawater samples and between 88.0% and 103.4% in the standard reference material for organics in mussel tissues (NIST SRM 2977). These methods were applied to a monitoring program performed along the northwest coast of Portugal during four seasons in 2011 in order to assess the levels of these compounds present in coastal waters and in the tissues of goose barnacles, one food resource of high commercial value. The results showed that although the concentrations of PAHs in seawaters and P. pollicipes varied significantly along the coast and between seasons (p < 0.05), in general the concentrations in seawater can be classified as “Class II – Good/Natural Background Concentrations” during the four seasons of 2011. As for the concentrations of PAHs in P. pollicipes, they were positively correlated (p < 0.05) with their concentrations in seawater, indicating that P. pollicipes may be an adequate biomonitor species of PAHs availabilities along the coast of Portugal throughout the year.

Exceptional strandings of the purple snail Janthina pallida Thompson, 1840 (Gastropoda: Epitoniidae) and first record of an alien goose barnacle along the Ligurian coast (western Mediterranean Sea)

During spring 2017, starting from 12 May, exceptional strandings of the purple snail Janthina pallida were recorded in the Ligurian Sea and along the western coast of Sardinia Island, under the effect of southern winds. The strandings continued for 3 days, until 15 May, when the winds shifted to the northern quadrant and the specimens were drifted back offshore. Such extensive strandings have never been previously reported in the scientific literature, either along the Mediterranean shores or elsewhere. Thanks to citizens’ help, it was possible to create a map of the strandings and obtain a gross estimate of the number of beached gastropods. The densities of the stranded animals reached an overall average of 801 ± 215 specimens m−2 (with peaks of over 2000 shells and rafts m−2 densely packed with hydrozoan Velella velella sails), corresponding to an average biomass of about 1.5 kg m−2. The size–frequency distribution of the shell heights showed a bi-modal trend, as is usual in the case of sequential hermaphroditism: almost all the specimens fitting the first mode (11 mm) showed a raft without eggs (males), while all the specimens belonging to the largest mode (23 mm) had rafts with settled egg cases (females). The general trend of the sea currents in the North-western Mediterranean Basin explains the spatial distribution of the strandings following 3 days of constant southern moderate breeze (up to 28 km h−1). The presence of such huge J. pallida banks in the Ligurian Sea is stochastic, probably linked to an Atlantic population entering through the Gibraltar Strait, as evidenced by the simultaneous presence of the buoy barnacle, Dosima fascicularis, a circumtropical species recorded here for the second time in the Mediterranean Sea.

거북손(Pollicipes mitella)의 식품 영양성분 특성

Common stalked barnacle Pollicipes mitella is a filter-feeding crustacean that attaches itself to the surfaces of rocks in the ocean intertidal zone. Pollicipes mitella is one of about a dozen species of goose barnacle that are gathered commercially for human consumption. In Portugal and Spain, they...

Predicting &lt;em&gt;Pollicipes pollicipes&lt;/em&gt; (Crustacea: Cirripedia) abundance on intertidal rocky shores of SW Portugal: a multi-scale approach based on a simple fetch-based wave exposure index

Understanding and predicting patterns of distribution and abundance of marine resources is important for conservation and management purposes in small-scale artisanal fisheries and industrial fisheries worldwide. The goose barnacle (Pollicipes pollicipes) is an important shellfish resource and its distribution is closely related to wave exposure at different spatial scales. We modelled the abundance (percent coverage) of P. pollicipes as a function of a simple wave exposure index based on fetch estimates from digitized coastlines at different spatial scales. The model accounted for 47.5% of the explained deviance and indicated that barnacle abundance increases non-linearly with wave exposure at both the smallest (metres) and largest (kilometres) spatial scales considered in this study. Distribution maps were predicted for the study region in SW Portugal. Our study suggests that the relationship between fetch-based exposure indices and P. pollicipes percent cover may be used as a simple tool for providing stakeholders with information on barnacle distribution patterns. This information may improve assessment of harvesting grounds and the dimension of exploitable areas, aiding management plans and supporting decision making on conservation, harvesting pressure and surveillance strategies for this highly appreciated and socio-economically important marine resource.

Harvest locations of goose barnacles can be successfully discriminated using trace elemental signatures.

European Union regulations state that consumers must be rightfully informed about the provenance of fishery products to prevent fraudulent practices. However, mislabeling of the geographical origin is a common practice. It is therefore paramount to develop forensic methods that allow all players involved in the supply chain to accurately trace the origin of seafood. In this study, trace elemental signatures (TES) of the goose barnacle Pollicipes pollicipes, collected from ten sites along the Portuguese coast, were employed to discriminate individual’s origin. Barium (Ba), boron (B), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), lithium (Li), magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), phosphorous (P), lead (Pb), strontium (Sr) and zinc (Zn) - were quantified using Inductively Coupled Plasma−Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Significant differences were recorded among locations for all elements. A regularized discriminant analysis (RDA) revealed that 83% of all individuals were correctly assigned. This study shows TES can be a reliable tool to confirm the geographic origin of goose barnacles at fine spatial resolution. Although additional studies are required to ascertain the reliability of TES on cooked specimens and the temporal stability of the signature, the approach holds great promise for the management of goose barnacles fisheries, enforcement of conservation policies and assurance in accurate labeling.

Collection and consumption of echinoderms and crustaceans at the Mesolithic shell midden site of El Mazo (northern Iberia): Opportunistic behaviour or social strategy?

Recent studies in Atlantic Europe on crab remains, goose barnacles and sea urchins have revealed that these species can be of great help in determining patterns of shellfish collection and providing new information on subsistence strategies of hunter-fisher-gatherers. Current excavations at the Mesolithic shell midden site of El Mazo cave (Asturias, northern Iberia) have produced a sizeable amount of crustacean and echinoderm remains from a long stratigraphic sequence that covers an important part of the Mesolithic chronological range, providing the opportunity to investigate long-term exploitation patterns. Results show that echinoderms (sea urchins) and crustaceans (goose barnacles and crabs) were present throughout all of the stratigraphic units (from 8.9 to 7.6 cal ka), suggesting that they were a persistently exploited food source. However, these resources were not intensively exploited, save perhaps sea urchins at the base of the sequence. From a quantitative perspective, these resources have been traditionally interpreted as minor resources exploited opportunistically to help group survival. However, given the pattern of continuous exploitation exhibited by these resources in northern Iberia and other areas of Atlantic Europe, we suggest that they can be interpreted from a qualitative perspective as stable resources with a significant social value.

Incorporating landscape metrics into invertebrate fisheries management: case study of the gooseneck barnacle in Asturias (N. Spain)

Abstract Landscape components can affect all the important biological processes of invertebrate populations, including their harvest quality, yet they are rarely considered in fisheries management frameworks. Here, we explore landscape, economic and ecologic variables to demonstrate that landscape metrics can be a valuable component in the management of sessile invertebrate fisheries. We developed a map-derived model that links landscape variables with the quality of a fishing resource, using five topographical variables—coastal convexity, orientation, complexity, exposure, and distance from the coast—all but the latter were tested at 23 different spatial scales. The model was ground-truthed using the case study of the gooseneck barnacle fishery in Asturias (N. Spain). Distance from the coast, coastal convexity on a scale of 25 km and exposure on a scale of 1 km appear to be driving the quality of the resource. Our model can predict high-quality gooseneck barnacle fishing zones with 72% accuracy. Moreover, we used a 10-year time-series of gooseneck barnacle landings and sales to analyse the impact of quality on the fishery. Fishers have a bias towards harvesting high-quality gooseneck barnacles, which are sold at higher market values. Thus, quality directly affects landings and sales. Our results highlight the interest of incorporating landscape metrics in fisheries management to generate and support spatially explicit conservation and exploitation policies.