Living in the Baltic Sea

Habitat
Bottom dwelling in rivers, lakes or at sea and as parasites attached to fish. The first 4-5 years of life they are blind larvae (ammocoetes), buried in mud and filter feeding. This stage is followed by a metamorphosis turning them in to blood-sucking predators. Once adult, the Lamprey travel far out to sea and stay there for 1-2 years until they have reached reproduction age.
Food
Food includes worms, crustaceans and dead fish but the Lamprey is also a parasite. They attack their prey by fixing their funnel shaped mouth to the animal’s body, using their hook like teeth to cut through skin and scales to get to the blood and body fluid. They can stay attached like this for months. Secretions in the Lamprey's mouth prevent the victim's blood from clotting. Victims typically die from excessive blood loss or infection.


Spawning
Age: 6-10 years old
Season: February - June
Number of eggs: 4 000-40 000

For mating they return to their birthplace, which usually are rivers. They dig a cavity on the graveled bottom occasionally working in groups. During mating the female stays attached to a stone and the male attached to the upper side of her head squeezing her body thus releasing the eggs that he then fertilizes. The spawning lasts 1-1,5 weeks and generally takes place after dark. Male and female both die after mating.

Human impact and Status
Lamprey are used as a model organism in biomedical research. They are also used as bait and fished for food. Lamprey is fished by man in creels and considered a great delicacy similar to that of the Eel. The Lamprey is now an endangered species partially because of obstacles such as water turbines in rivers and dams, which prevents it to migrate to its spawning areas. CLOSE