What is a Lamprey?

A lamprey is a marine animal that is typically found in coastal and fresh waters. While they are frequently referred to as lamprey eels, they are part of the fish family. A lamprey's most notable feature is its large suction-cup like mouth that is filled with rows of sharp teeth. Most lamprey are parasitic in nature, and survive by attaching mouths to fish and other marine animals. Once attached, they suck the blood out of the host bodies until it dies. There are many different species of the fish, and they can vary in from a 6 to 40 inches (15 to 100 centimeters) in length.

Lampreys are unique fish and they have little in common with most modern day marine life. The only comparable animal to the lamprey is the hagfish, which also resembles an eel and has no real jaw structure. Many scientists have suggested that lampreys are "living fossils," or organisms that have ceased to evolve for millions of years.

This view has not been easy to confirm, since finding fossilized lampreys is difficult as they are mostly made of cartilage that decays quickly after death. The few fossilized specimens that have been found do support this theory, and it appears that for the past 300-plus million years the parasitic marine animals have barely changed at all.

In North America, the sea lamprey is seen as a dangerous pest. Completion of the man made Welland Canal in 1921 saw the species spread from Lake Ontario to the other Great Lakes and quickly become an invasive species. The parasitic marine animal laid waste to fish crops across all the lakes. Entire fisheries were decimated by the lamprey, which had no natural predators in the lakes. The contamination of lampreys was finally controlled in the 1950s, when scientists developed a special chemical agent that killed lampreys while leaving other fish unharmed. Lampreys can still be found in the Great Lakes today, but in much smaller numbers.

In contrast to its negative reputation in America, the lamprey is commonly seen as a delicacy in many other parts of the world, especially Europe. Pie, stew and meat brewet are all foods that can be made using the fish as a primary ingredient. Efforts to recreate the popularity of the marine animal as a food in America have failed to take off. This may have to do with the negative reputation as a parasite, and with its eel-like appearance.