limpet

limpet, marine gastropod mollusk with a simple, flattened, conical shell, found in cooler waters of the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Certain species creep over rocks, feeding on algae during high tides, but when the tide recedes they return instinctively to the same spot occupied previously, to await the return of high water. The muscular foot clings so powerfully that limpets are found in wave-swept areas where few other forms of life can survive. The keyhole limpet is named for its central opening, through which respiratory currents pass. Limpets range up to 4 in. (10 cm) in length, but most are smaller; there are several freshwater species. Limpets are classified in the phylum Mollusca, class Gastropoda, order Archeogastropoda.

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limpet

European limpets (Patella vulgata) with acorn barnacles (Balanus balanoides)

(credit: Neville Fox-Davies—Bruce Coleman Inc./EB Inc.)

Any of various species of snails that have a flattened shell. Most marine species (subclass Prosobranchia) cling to rocks near shore. A common U.S. species is the Atlantic plate limpet (Acmaea testudinalis) of cold waters. Keyhole limpets have a slit or hole at the apex of the shell. Some limpets (subclass Pulmonata) live in brackish water and freshwater. See also mollusk.