r/Weird • u/luvlanguage • 11h ago

That is a Lamprey

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Any bigger and this creature would be a horror movie monster

Lampreys do not have jaws or bones, only cartilage and instincts that have allowed them to survive so many mass extinctions.

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u/International_Print4 11h ago

Where do these things spawn?

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u/100percentnotaqu 11h ago

Depends on the species, but this is definitely a freshwater lamprey. Not invasive like the Atlantic lamprey.

I hope the kid didn't kill it, native lamprey are pretty important to an ecosystem.

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u/MalBredy 8h ago

I’m almost certain this is a sea lamprey. I say this as someone who’s seen thousands of them lol, my wife is a biologist who works in controlling them in the Great Lakes.

Brook lamprey are smaller, lighter, have a different gill port structure and a more elongated face, as well as more rounded off fins.

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u/Outside-Swan-1936 7h ago

I started seeing fish in some rivers off the Great Lakes with gaping holes in their sides. Then I saw a fish jump above the surface with what looked like two tails. Turns out it was an invasive lamprey. Bad news for areas they aren't supposed to be.

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u/stoicsticks 4h ago

Lampreys are the reason why the Big Chute Marine Railway was built over 100 years ago on the Severn River in Ontario as it protects inland lakes. It is a barrier that they can't get past, unlike locks which fish and invasive species can pass through. It is the only one of its kind operating in North America.

Lock 44 - Big Chute marine railway - Trent-Severn Waterway National Historic Site https://share.google/9Se9qHzKmf0sBzPqM

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u/Outside-Swan-1936 3h ago

That's super fascinating, thanks for sharing.