Brook lamprey cluster to spawn

May is the best time to catch a glimpse of this eel-like fish, found across the UK. Like its relatives, river and sea lampreys, the brook lamprey is an ancient species that is older than dinosaurs. Like sharks – another ancient species – their skeletons are made of cartilage rather than bone. Adults are between 15 and 25 centimetres and greenish-grey, with two back fins and gills by their head. Instead of a jaw, lampreys have a round sucker for a mouth and one nostril on top of their head. Look in shallow areas of brooks, streams and rivers for clusters of them spawning (reproducing). The eggs hatch in a few days but the larvae (young) stay buried for up to seven years. They then become adults and spawn, but…

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The Week Junior (UK) (Digital) - 1 Issue, 439

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