When I got closer to the limpet, I thought it was a piece of a shell that had broken off and coincidently landed on a rock. I started to see more shells in that same position, and I realized that it was actually a living creature that deliberately placed itself on the rock. I got really curious to see what was underneath, but I was scared to touch the limpet. I was surprised at the amount of limpets! They were on every rock.
Limpets are marine snails that live in a rocky intertidal ecosystem. They live on hard surfaces. They have locomotion and can use their muscular foot to suction themselves onto a surface. Some limpets have gills, while others have lungs. Limpets can be freshwater or saltwater animals. True limpets live in the temperate Eastern Atlantic Ocean in western Europe.
The limpet uses its shell to withstand the force of crashing waves and hungry predators. Another quality that aids a limpet's ability to survive is its ability to undergo sex changes. A male can turn into a female limpet. Limpets also have tiny but really strong teeth that allow them to scrape algae off rocks to eat. The teeth of a limpet are made of nanofibers. The strength of the teeth of limpets has inspired new structural designs in the engineering field!
