American Brook Lamprey in the Genesee River

Although lampreys are frequently associated with vampires and parasites, most lampreys are actually non-parasitic, they never feed on a fish. These species are called "brook" lampreys and are often much smaller than parasitic species. In New York we have three species of brook lampreys and I went to find American brook lamprey today. I went to the Genesee River, where the NYSDEC has numerous records of American brook lamprey, to see if I could also find them.

The one above is an ammocoete.

Adults swam by me as I waded in the stream. They were on their way to find a mate and produce the new generation.

This little guy was not terribly pleased that I detained him for a pic, he gave me the evil eye before I let him go.

Above is the stream from which these guys were captured.

I also went to another site and captured this guy quickly.

This site was actually a fishing access point, I doubt many individuals looking for trout realize they are literally stepping on lampreys!

These guys were all over the place at the above site. They are actually one of our largest caddisflies. They construct cases to protect themselves. This little guy seemed very content with being picked up and scraped my fingers to see if it could find any tasty algae. Caddisflies are important indicators of water quality.

As a side note I believe I am the first person to post pictures of American brook lamprey from the Genesee River. If I am going to be part of the Rat Race I need to carve out a little section I can call my own.