Widespread support for a global species list with a formal governance system.

Taxonomic data are a scientific common. Unlike nomenclature, which has strong governance institutions, there are currently no generally accepted governance institutions for the compilation of taxonomic data into an accepted global list. This gap results in challenges for conservation, ecological research, policymaking, international trade, and other areas of scientific and societal importance.

Principles for creating a single authoritative list of the world's species.

Lists of species underpin many fields of human endeavour, but there are currently no universally accepted principles for deciding which biological species should be accepted when there are alternative taxonomic treatments (and, by extension, which scientific names should be applied to those species). As improvements in information technology make it easier to communicate, access, and aggregate biodiversity information, there is a need for a framework that helps taxonomists and the users of taxonomy decide which taxa and names should be used by society whilst continuing to encourage taxonomic research that leads to new species discoveries, new knowledge of species relationships, and the refinement of existing species concepts. Here, we present 10 principles that can underpin such a governance framework, namely (i) the species list must be based on science and free from nontaxonomic considerations and interference, (ii) governance of the species list must aim for community support and use, (iii) all decisions about list composition must be transparent, (iv) the governance of validated lists of species is separate from the governance of the names of taxa, (v) governance of lists of accepted species must not constrain academic freedom, (vi) the set of criteria considered sufficient to recognise species boundaries may appropriately vary between different taxonomic groups but should be consistent when possible, (vii) a global list must balance conflicting needs for currency and stability by having archived versions, (viii) contributors need appropriate recognition, (ix) list content should be traceable, and (x) a global listing process needs both to encompass global diversity and to accommodate local knowledge of that diversity.

Paleogene Verrucidae (Cirripedia: Verrucomorpha) of North America, with descriptions of three new species.

In North America, Paleogene Verrucidae are rarely encountered. Only a single named species has been previously discussed by Zullo Baum (1979), who provisionally assigned a Palaeocene form from North Carolina to Verruca rocana Steinmann, 1921. Eocene deposits in Washington State (USA) have now yielded two new species from intertidal to shallow water environments: Verruca gailgoedertae sp.

Paleontological Studies of Whale Barnacles in Taiwan Reveal New Cetacean Migration Routes in the Western Pacific Since the Miocene.

This paper reports a rediscovery of the first museum specimens of fossil whale barnacles from Taiwan. They are part of the material studied and figured by Ichiro Hayasaka in 1934. After examination of the material, which includes two cut-sections and one slice, the taxonomic assignment is revised to Bronn, 1831.

The "Tears of the Virgin" at Lakes Entrance, southeast Australia were made by the intertidal barnacle Chthamalus antennatus (Cirripedia: Thoracica) and cyanobacteria.

Curious eroded depressions, most resembling an eye shedding an elongate tear, are found in gently sloping, intertidal, carbonate-rich arenite outcropping on the sea coast near Lakes Entrance, Victoria, southeast Australia. The depressions, known locally as "Tears of the Virgin," are evidently formed by multiple generations of a barnacle, Chthamalus antennatus Darwin, 1854 in association with cyanobacteria. While the round part of a depression offers the barnacle a modicum of protection from impacts during high tides, it is also partially inhabited by cyanobacteria, which extend into and tend to fill the elongate tear.

Unravelling the nature of Waiparaconus, a pennatulacean (Cnidaria: Octocorallia) from the Late Mesozoic-Early Cainozoic of the Southern Hemisphere.

Enigmatic calcareous conical fossils have been known from marine Paleocene-Eocene sequences of New Zealand since the early 1870s. More recently, similar fossils have been recorded from both Late Cretaceous marine sequences of Western Australia, New Caledonia and Antarctica, and possibly from the Eocene of South America. The present paper extends the record to the late Cretaceous of New Caledonia.

On ethics, the pursuit of knowledge, truth and status in the hallowed halls of academe.

Advancement in academe is largely on the basis of research output; that is, refereed journal papers. This paper first explores pressures on academics, especially emerging researchers, when English is not a first language. We assess why, when faculty members rush to improve their station that they may elect to circumvent ethical protocols to accelerate their promotion and status.

Vulcanolepas scotiaensis sp. nov., a new deep-sea scalpelliform barnacle (Eolepadidae: Neolepadinae) from hydrothermal vents in the Scotia Sea, Antarctica.

A new deep-sea stalked barnacle, Vulcanolepas scotiaensis sp. nov. is described from hydrothermal vents at depths of 2400-2600 metres along segments of the East Scotia Ridge and from 1400 metres in the Kemp Caldera.

Opportunism and the resilience of barnacles (Cirripedia: Thoracica) to environmental change.

Cirripede-like organisms have their origins in the Palaeozoic, but until the Cainozoic, were represented primarily by pedunculated forms, such as the Scalpelliformes. Acorn barnacles (Balanomorpha) are first recorded after the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event. During the late Palaeogene, rapid radiation of cirripedes resulted in sufficient diversification for them to occupy most marine environments.

Some biological consequences of environmental change: a study using barnacles (Cirripedia: Balanomorpha) and gum trees (Angiospermae: Myrtaceae).

Uniformitarianism permits understanding of the past on the basis of the present, and modeling the future through consideration of the fossil record. The present paper addresses the impact environmental (climatic) change has had on acorn barnacles and eucalyptus trees. Acorn barnacles (Balanomorpha) are first recorded after the K/T mass-extinction event.

Some insights into how barnacles survive as sessile organisms.

During routine chemical analyses of the stalked ibliform barnacle Chaetolepas calcitergum Buckeridge & Newman 2006, peaks of more than 7% (by dry mass) of bromine were detected. Although bromine ions occur in seawater (up to 66 ppm), this level of accumulation, in the soft tissue of the barnacle, is extraordinary. Organic concentration of bromine compounds occurs in a number of invertebrates, such as algae and sponges, but this is the first record of elevated bromine in goose barnacles.

The case for mandatory inclusion of ethics within the zoological sciences curriculum.

Traditionally, undergraduate science curricula include little or no "ethics," either as theory or practice. However, zoologists are currently enjoying considerable media exposure: some of it positive (as in conservation practice), but more often negative (pertaining to issues such as the use of animals for testing of drugs, and genetic engineering). More than ever before, zoologists are being asked to make value judgments, and many of these involve moral assessment; if we accept that zoologists (along with other scientists) are professionals, then we must accept that they are responsible for any decisions they make, and it then follows that they are accountable, which can have serious ramifications in cases of malpractice.