A FISHERMAN has stumbled across a blood-sucking ‘vampire fish’ when he was enjoying a fishing trip in Devon.
Jason Moore, 47, was looking for a place to catch some some chub when he spotted the metre-long creature.
The toothy, eel-like animal, dubbed a ‘living dinosaur‘ was a dead River Lamprey and was 10 times bigger than Moore had ever seen before.
He told The Metro: “It was in the water, on the water’s edge. I was sort of like ‘wow, that’s amazing, look at the size of that! Let’s fish it out and have a look.’
“It’s long and eel-like, and its mouth is – I don’t know how to describe it really – a bit like a leech I suppose, but much, much bigger.
“It’s got rows and rows and rows of teeth, that almost look like the Demogorgon from Stranger Things. It looks quite horrifying.”
River Lamprey can grow up to 50cm according the The Wildlife Trust, so the one Moore discovered in the River Exe was actually bit of a monster, being double the size.
It also describes them as ‘one of the most primitive vertebrates still alive today.’
Moore, who is familiar with the species, and said the the lengthy specimen appeared to have spawned some fish eggs before it had died.
He thinks despite the creatures monstrous look there is no need to be scared of lamprey.
He said: “I think most people are a bit shocked that that type of thing swims in our rivers really.
“But I wouldn’t want anybody to be scared or horrified, or really think about not going in the rivers, not kayaking, or avoiding a river for recreation just because that’s in there.”
The River Exe, starting in Exmoor and running through Somerset and Devon, is home to a range of fish species including Atlantic salmon, European eel, and two lamprey species.
The Exe is mostly known for it’s salmon population but unluckily Moore ended up with a jawless parasite instead.
He likened the creature to the monster in the popular sci-fi series Stranger Things, describing it like a it to a fleshy, toothy, face-less Demogorgon.
Unlike the TV show, Lamprey bites won’t kill you.
They can however be very painful and if left untreated can lead to infection.
One man has claimed to still be in pain nearly a decade after he was attacked by a vampire fish.
Executive secretary of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission Dr Marc Gaden explained these bites are uncommon.
He said: “Adult lampreys prey upon fish, not humans or any other warm-blooded creature for that matter. That said, long distance swimmers, whose bodies have cooled, have been known to pluck off lampreys that have attached to hitch a ride. Such occurrences, while creepy, are rare and are not harmful.
“Even if a lamprey were to attach to a human, it would not likely break the skin, though the suction cup mouth, ringed with teeth, might leave a bizarre looking mark. As juveniles, lampreys live completely out of sight, as inoffensive larvae burrowed throughout muddy river bottoms.
“Lampreys are native and valued parts of ecosystems throughout the UK, where they should be respected and protected. But, where they are non-native and invasive, such as sea lampreys in the North American Great Lakes, they are rather lethal to native fishes and must be controlled.”
