Ichthyomyzon greeleyi

Mountain Brook lamprey
Mountain Brook Lamprey (Ichthyomyzon greeleyi)
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Cephalaspidomorphi
Order:	Petromyzontiformes
Family:	Petromyzontidae
Genus:	Ichthyomyzon
Species:	I. greeleyi
Binomial name
Ichthyomyzon greeleyi Carl Hubbs & Trautman, 1937

Ichthyomyzon greeleyi or the Mountain Brook Lamprey is a lamprey found in parts of the Mississippi river basin, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and in the Cumberland River and Tennessee river.

Identification

The dorsal fin is notched but not separated from the disk, and when expanded, is always narrower than the head. Life colors include gray-brown or an olive-tan with a white or off-white underside and yellow fins. The sides can be olive or tan with dark flecks.

Spawning

Spawning starts when the water is 18.9 °C (42.5 °F). The males create nest in a foot or so of water by clearing stones and pebbles out of the way and exposing fine gravel or sand. The depression formed in shallow, about 2 inches deep with a diameter of 8 to 10 inches. Spawning begins when a female attaches herself to a rock over the nest. These lamprey die after spawning.

References

• IUCN 2007. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 28 September 2007.