There is a beauty in the fact that whales, the largest filter feeders in the world, have communities of barnacles that live on them, some of the smallest filter feeders. I often wonder if the barnacles are aware that they are living on the body of a giant. We often overlook them, treating them as a burden when they are attached to the bottom of a boat or dock. Inside the shell is a living creature, filtering little particles of food, hitching a ride on a long journey from Antarctica all the way to the warm waters of Tonga.