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Lampreys Are Living Fossils Of Prehistoric Bloodsuckers

A fossil of ancient lampreys was found in South Africa; the 360mln y.o. fossil looked amazingly alike bloodsucking lampreys of today.

The newly found fossil of a prehistoric lamprey has a shark-like cartilage backbone, made of collagen, much like humans. The fossil has just one long dorsal fin, compared to lampreys of today, which are multi dorsal-finned.

Eel lampreys possess a funnel-like sucking mouth, helping it bore into the flesh of other fish to suck their blood.

Prehistoric lampreys did not have jaws, but boasted a mouth packed with 14 horny spiked teeth, much like the modern lamprey (19 teeth). The difference is that it was a lot smaller, which makes modern lampreys "small-mouthed," compared to their ancestors.

The lamprey and the hagfish appear to be the only survivors of what is believed to be the first family of vertebrates, which according to some paleontology experts developed into jawed, bony fish.

The jawed fish, most likely descending from the jawless lamprey and other fish-like creatures of that time, appeared half a billion years ago, taking another evolutionary path.

Current lampreys have big eyes, a nostril, and a total of 14 gills. Their first 5-7 years are spent in the form of burrowing freshwater larvae, then metamorphose into predatory/parasitic creatures which cling onto fish with their mouths, and feed on its blood and tissues.

Lampreys reproduce in fresh water by creating a nest, then spawn and die.