Bognorscalpellum venablesi was a small stalked barnacle that lived permanently attached to a firm surface. It fed by extending feathery limbs into the water and filtering tiny suspended particles and plankton from passing currents.

In the muddy London Clay environment, suitable attachment points may have included shells, pieces of wood and other hard objects lying on or floating above the seabed. These tiny animals formed part of the hidden filter-feeding community that recycled food carried through the warm Eocene sea.