Many microenvironments can be found on the body of a gray whale, supporting a variety of creatures, including some that are found nowhere else. Only one species of barnacle (Cryptolepas rhachianecti) is associated with the gray whale. It is not parasitic and does not harm the whale. It is a crustacean that attaches itself to the skin of the whale with a very strong glue and remains there for its adult life. The whale's skin grows around and through the barnacle to ensure that it remains attached. The barnacle feeds on planktonic organisms in the water as the whale swims along. Their life cycle seems to be timed to when the calves are born in the Baja lagoons. Barnacles on the mother whales release larvae into the water that will soon settle on the calves. Sometimes individual gray whales are identified by the distinctive patterns created by dense clusters of barnacles.
Three species of amphipod crustaceans live on the body of the gray whale, two of which (Cyamus scammoni and Cyamus kessleri) are endemic - found only on the gray whale! Referred to as whale lice, they cling tenaciously wherever they can get a hold and feed on bits of whale skin. They are transferred from mother to baby by direct body contact during daily activities.
The cumulative weight of whale hitchhikers can total hundreds of pounds. They are an integral part of the life of a gray whale.
