1. A method of dispersal used by some animals in which they cling to the surface of another animal to be carried to a new site, e.g. in search of food.
2. A symbiotic relationship, especially among arthropods and some fishes, in which one organism transports another organism of a different species.
3. A nonparasitic relationship in which one species is carried about by another.
4. Using a second organism for transportation. Examples are the remora on a shark, or mites on dung beetles. Both temporary and permanent phoresy exist.