This is not something you want to meet while out swimming. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 2.0 NOAA
Swimmers have been urged to be on the lookout due to a rise in the number of blood-sucking sea lampreys.
Notorious for their vampire-like behavior, these alien-looking creatures have recently been appearing in rivers and streams across England in alarming numbers.
Sea lampreys - as their name suggests - are typically found in the ocean, but during the summer months they can be commonly found swimming up rivers to lay their eggs.
Their unfortunate reputation stems from their tendency to suck the blood of their unsuspecting victims using a grotesque-looking suction-cup mouth full of tiny, razor-sharp teeth.
Perhaps the most interesting thing of all about these creatures however is the fact that they have remained relatively unchanged for millions of years and are even thought to predate the dinosaurs.
Despite appearances, the sea lamprey is actually one extremely effective and resilient parasite.
I have watched River Monsters and will no longer swim in lakes, streams, rivers seas or oceans. Man made pools that are 100% clear for me! Having read so many things and watched TV shows that tell you what is lurking below...Caused me to have a phobia about it.
Lampreys seem to be pretty interesting animals. I saw the first episode of a series with David Attenborough the other day about development of life on Earth. In it, David Attenborough was holding a lamprey in a boat in a British river while explaining that lampreys are very primitive fish without a jaw that have survived from an early time in the development of life on Earth.
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