Animal Profiles
Fish

Lamprey

Petromyzontiformes

Living

Living individuals or members of this group exist today. This does not mean they are safe from extinction.

Lampreys are jawless fishes with a round sucking mouth. This account follows the sea lamprey, whose life includes a filter-feeding larval stage and a later stage attached to other fishes.

Sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) photographed in an aquarium.

Sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) photographed in an aquarium.

Fernando Losada Rodríguez · CC BY-SA

At a glance

Location
Petromyzon marinus is the representative used here. Native populations connect Atlantic coastal waters with rivers used for reproduction. Landlocked populations also occur, including invasive populations in the Great Lakes.
Habitat
Coast, Rivers and lakes
Diet
Carnivore
Food
Larvae filter small organic material from freshwater habitats.

Classification

Common name
Lamprey
Browse group
Fish
Scientific name or taxon
Petromyzontiformes
Taxon rank
order
Order
Petromyzontiformes
Source classification
Petromyzontida

Taxonomy checked against GBIF. For breeds and hybrids, this describes the listed parent taxon.

Three things to know

  • It has no jaws.
  • Larvae filter-feed in fresh water.
  • The mouth forms a toothed sucking disc.

Habitat and range

Petromyzon marinus is the representative used here. Native populations connect Atlantic coastal waters with rivers used for reproduction. Landlocked populations also occur, including invasive populations in the Great Lakes.

Appearance and adaptations

A smooth, scaleless body can resemble an eel, but the circular toothed mouth lacks jaws. Seven gill openings lie in a row behind the eye on each side of the head.

Diet and behaviour

Larvae filter small organic material from freshwater habitats. Later stages attach to fishes and consume tissues and body fluids. Mature sea lampreys return to freshwater spawning areas; not every lamprey species has this parasitic life history.

Sources

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