Shorthead Lamprey
Mordacia mordax
- Group: Other
- Max size: 50 cm
- For divers: safe
- IUCN status: LC
As an adult this lamprey clamps onto other fishes with its jawless sucker mouth and rasps at their flesh, spending most of its life in estuaries and the sea. To breed it runs up rivers, gathering in fast flowing stretches and often piling up below anything that blocks its path.
Taxonomy: Animalia › Chordata › Petromyzonti › Petromyzontiformes › Mordaciidae › Mordacia
Species data via the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS), AphiaID 281595.
FAQ
- Is the Shorthead Lamprey dangerous to divers?
- The Shorthead Lamprey is harmless to divers.
- How big does the Shorthead Lamprey get?
- The Shorthead Lamprey grows to about 50 cm.