Lampreys are part of a group of primitive jawless fishes – a group from which it’s thought all jawed vertebrates evolved. Lampreys’ mouths are modified into an oral disc with numerous small horny teeth. They have an anadromous life cycle, which means they generally live in the ocean (where they parasitise other fishes) but swim to fresh water to spawn. They are called the Pouch Lamprey as breeding males have an enlarged pouch on the underside of the head.
Distribution: southern Australia, New Zealand, South America, Falkland Islands and South Georgia
Conservation status: data deficient
Evolutionary distinctiveness: not assessed