An organism that lives as a parasite on the external surface of a larger organism.
From 'epizoa' plus '-ite' (a suffix denoting a thing or entity). This term creates a singular noun for external parasitic organisms.
Epizoites like barnacles on whales represent one of nature's most creative compromises—the barnacle gets free transport and food-filled water, the whale gets mostly minor inconvenience, showing that some parasitic relationships edge toward mutualism.
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