Lamprey
| Lamprey | |
|---|---|
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| Sea lamprey in Sweden | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | Petromyzontiformes
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| Families and unplaced genera | |
Lampreys are jawless fish, whose adults are characterized by a toothed, funnel-like, sucking mouth. Lampreys belong to the order Petromyzontiformes. They live in coastal and fresh waters, and are found in temperate regions around the world.
Description
[change | change source]Lampreys are eel-like, scaleless animals. They range from about 15 to 100 centimetres (6 to 40 inches) long. They have well-developed eyes, one or two dorsal fins, a tail fin, a single nostril on top of the head, and seven gill openings on each side of the body. Like the hagfish, they lack bones, jaws, and paired fins. The skeleton of a lamprey consists of cartilage; the mouth is a round, sucking hole with sharp teeth.
