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The lake trout plays a vital role in the Lake Superior ecosystem. The lake trout has traditionally been considered an apex predator, which means that it has no predators. The sea lamprey is an aggressive predator by nature, which gives it a competitive advantage in a lake system where it has no predators and its prey lacks defenses against it.
Research on sea lampreys has revealed that sexually mature males use a specialized heat-producing tissue in the form of a ridge of fat cells near the anterior dorsal fin to stimulate females. After having attracted a female with pheromones, the heat detected by the female through body contact will encourage spawning.
Juvenile lamprey feed by sucking up mud containing micro-organisms and organic debris. The lamprey has well-developed eyes, while the hagfish has only primitive eyespots. The hagfish coats itself and carcasses it finds with noxious slime to deter predators, and periodically ties itself into a knot to scrape the slime off.
Each larva that grows into a juvenile sea lamprey will migrate into Lake Michigan and can kill 40 pounds of fish in its 12- to 18-month feeding period.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will do survey work for sea lampreys near the mouths of Elliot Creek, and the Maple, Pigeon, and Sturgeon rivers.
The southern brook lamprey encounters a wide range of predators in its natural habitat. [7] The eggs of adults are preyed on by various species of fish and crayfish. [ 8 ] Southern brook lampreys in the larval stage serve as prey for a wide range of fish and bird species. [ 8 ]
Sea lampreys devastated the fishing industry of the Great Lakes. Within 20 years of the lamprey entering the Great Lakes, the harvesting of lake trout was reduced by 98%. Control efforts included lampricides, physical barriers, pheromone alarms and baiting, and trapping. The control has been extremely successful in reducing sea lamprey ...
Oregon officials are seeking more than $27 million in damages over dam repairs they say killed more than half a million Pacific lamprey fish in what they've described as one of the largest damages ...