Lampetra tridentata

Geographic Range

The Pacific lamprey, Lampetra tridentata , is an anadromous species. They spend the middle of their lives in the Pacific Ocean and their first and last years in freshwater habitats. Pacific lampreys are found throughout the Pacific Rim, from Hokkaido Island, Japan to Baja California, Mexico. They have been captured up to 100 miles off the West Coast of North America. Within their range, they inhabit most major river systems that flow into the Pacific Ocean.

• Biogeographic Regions
• nearctic nearctic
  • native native
• palearctic palearctic
  • native native
• pacific ocean pacific ocean
  • native native

Habitat

Lampetra tridentata spawns in the shallow, fast-moving headwaters of gravel-bottomed streams, at depths of 0.3-4 meters. The larvae, called ammocoetes, drift downstream after hatching and burrow into fine sediments. Ammocoetes are most successful in slow-moving reaches with an open riparian canopy. After reaching their adult stage, they migrate to the open ocean, where they have been found at depths of 90-800 meters.

• Habitat Regions
• saltwater or marine saltwater or marine
• freshwater freshwater

• Aquatic Biomes
• pelagic pelagic
• rivers and streams

Physical Description

Lampetra tridentata is distinguished from other lamprey species by its three large, sharp anterior teeth, located on the supraoral bar. Like all lampreys, they have seven breathing pores on each side of their body and a large sucking disc as a mouth. They are usually 381-635 millimeters long by the time they migrate to the ocean. Once in the ocean, they can grow up to 700 millimeters long. On average, they weigh one pound, or 453 grams. However, individuals in coastal populations tend to be smaller than those that spawn further inland. They are dark blue on top and silver or white underneath. During breeding season, Pacific lampreys turn reddish-brown, and the sexes begin to differ in appearance as a pseudo-anal fin develops on the female. Their larvae are difficult to distinguish from those of other lamprey species.

• Other Physical Features
• ectothermic ectothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• sexes alike

Development

Pacific lamprey ammocoetes have no eyes, teeth, or swimming ability. After 4-7 years, they enter metamorphosis, or macropthalmia. In addition to developing eyes and teeth, their fins become more defined, and their heads and naso-pineal organs enlarge.

• Development - Life Cycle
• metamorphosis metamorphosis

Reproduction

Lampetra tridentata ammocoetes produce at least three different bile acid compounds. Adult Lampetra tridentata can smell these compounds and are attracted to the odor, which guides them upstream to their spawning grounds. Males and females cooperate to construct a shallow nest out of pebbles, which the female positions herself across. The male coils around her, and they release their eggs and sperm simultaneously. Pacific lampreys often construct multiple nests and spawn several times during the breeding season, and several pairs may spawn in the same nest.

• Mating System
• polygynandrous (promiscuous) polygynandrous (promiscuous)

Pacific lampreys spend 3-7 years as larvae before entering macropthalmia, or metamorphosis, from July to November. During macropthalmia, Pacific lampreys grow into their free-swimming, parasitic adult form over the course of several months. Sometime between fall and spring, when macropthalmia has been completed, they begin their migration to the Pacific Ocean. Pacific lampreys spend 1-3 years in their marine life stage before returning to freshwater between February and June. They remain in freshwater habitat for approximately one year before spawning and die 3-36 days after reproduction.

• Key Reproductive Features
• semelparous semelparous
• seasonal breeding seasonal breeding
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• fertilization fertilization
  • external external
• oviparous oviparous

Pacific lampreys construct their nests, called redds, by moving small stones with their mouthparts. A male and female cooperate to build a redd. The redd may be anywhere from 29-80 cm long and 30-85 cm wide, and is usually located 24-99 cm below the water’s surface. Individual Pacific lampreys will usually construct multiple redds. After spawning, adults have no involvement with their eggs or larvae.

• Parental Investment
• no parental involvement
• pre-fertilization
  • provisioning
  • protecting
    • male
    • female

Lifespan/Longevity

Behavior

Pacific lamprey ammocoetes often cluster together at high densities. Until metamorphosis, they are unable to swim. However, they can detach from the stream bed and drift downstream, usually when the current is at high velocity. Larger ammocoetes typically drift during fall, and smaller ammocoetes typically drift during spring. In freshwater habitats, Pacific lampreys are generally nocturnal. Adults are solitary outside of spawning season. During spawning season, either the male or the female may initiate courtship by rubbing up and down a potential mate's body.

• Key Behaviors
• natatorial natatorial
• nocturnal nocturnal
• parasite parasite
• motile motile
• migratory migratory
• solitary solitary

Home Range

Lampetra tridentata does not have a fixed home range and is not territorial.

Communication and Perception

Pacific lampreys rely most heavily on their olfactory and visual systems. Adults navigate to their spawning grounds by following the trail of pheromones released by ammocoetes.

• Communication Channels
• tactile tactile
• chemical chemical

• Other Communication Modes
• pheromones pheromones

• Perception Channels
• visual visual
• tactile tactile
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

During their larval stage, Pacific lampreys are filter feeders, consuming algae and detritus. Adults are parasitic, latching onto prey with their oral discs and consuming their blood and other bodily fluids. They feed on salmonids and a variety of other fishes, as well as several species of whale.

• Primary Diet
• carnivore carnivore
  • piscivore piscivore
  • eats body fluids
• herbivore herbivore
  • algivore
• detritivore detritivore

• Animal Foods
• mammals
• fish
• blood
• body fluids

• Plant Foods
• algae

• Other Foods
• detritus detritus

• Foraging Behavior
• filter-feeding filter-feeding

Predation

Ammocoetes stay hidden from predators by sheltering under substrate and only emerging at night. As they grow, they develop tougher skin that makes them less palatable. Adult cryptic coloration- dark on their dorsal side, light on their ventral side- disguises them from predators.

Pacific lamprey are prey for many species of fish, birds, and mammals. Eggs that overflow the nest are eaten by fish. Ammocoetes are particularly vulnerable to predators when emerging from their burrows and when dislodged by runoff. Adult Pacific lamprey are heavily preyed upon during the migration to their spawning grounds. After spawning, their carcasses also provide food for many species.

• Anti-predator Adaptations
• cryptic cryptic

Ecosystem Roles

The burrowing of Pacific lamprey ammocoetes aerates the streambed and softens the substrate. Ammocoetes may digest less than half of the food they consume, excreting the rest as fine particles that can be consumed by aquatic insects and other species. Pacific lampreys are higher in fats and calories than salmon, making them a valuable food source. Steller sea lions, Eumetopias jubatus , harbor seals, Phoca vitulina , and California sea lions, Zalophus californianus , have been found to consume more Pacific lamprey than salmon when both are available. This suggests Pacific lampreys may reduce the impact of predation on salmon. They supply high-calorie meals for many additional species, and their decomposing bodies provide nutrients to the freshwater and riparian ecosystems in which they spawn.

• Ecosystem Impact
• soil aeration soil aeration
• parasite parasite

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

Pacific lampreys were historically a major food source for indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest. Oil harvested from Pacific lampreys was used as food, hair conditioner, and treatment for ear aches. Pacific lampreys still hold great cultural and religious significance to many native peoples, and are harvested on special occasions. During the 1800's, Pacific lampreys were used to feed livestock and farmed fish. By potentially acting as a buffer between salmon and their natural predators, Pacific lampreys may increase the available harvest for fishermen. The anticoagulants in their saliva have made them a subject of medical research.

• Positive Impacts
• food food
• source of medicine or drug source of medicine or drug
• research and education

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

While Pacific lampreys may kill their hosts on rare occasions, there is no evidence that they have a significant negative impact on salmon populations. Pacific lampreys are often viewed negatively because they are mistakenly associated with sea lampreys, a pest species in the Great Lakes region. Unlike sea lampreys, which are an invasive species in the Great Lakes, Pacific lampreys are native to northwestern America and play an important role in its ecosystems.

Conservation Status

Dams and other artificial barriers have restricted Pacific lampreys' access to large portions of their freshwater range, contributing to their decline in river systems such as the upper Columbia Basin. Pacific lampreys are not strong swimmers and are unable to jump. These traits make it difficult for them to use the conventional fish ladders that help other fishes traverse dams. Dams with gratings appear to be especially difficult, since they impede Pacific lampreys' climbing ability. Adding rough surfaces to fish ladders could make climbing easier and increase the number of Pacific lampreys that cross the dams successfully. Although lampreys generally have a high tolerance for pollutants, chemical spills in river systems can kill large numbers of lampreys. Lamprey ammocoetes are especially vulnerable to pollution, since the sediments they inhabit can easily accumulate chemicals. Dredging also threatens ammocoetes. Among river lampreys (a close relative of Pacific lampreys), less than a third survived a dredging event. Pacific lamprey adults rely on the pheromones released by ammocoetes to find their way to their spawning grounds. If the ammocoete population near a spawning ground decreases enough, adults will not be able to locate the habitat and will disappear entirely from that area. Scientists are attempting to create synthetic versions of these pheromones, which could be used to guide Pacific lampreys to suitable spawning habitat.

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Sophie("Zosia") Lynch (author), Colorado State University, Peter Leipzig (editor), Colorado State University, Tanya Dewey (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

References

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Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Oregon Lampreys: Natural History, Status, and Analysis of Management Issues. 635000. Portland, Oregon: Fish Division, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. 2002.