Sea lamprey are an invasive species with few natural predators and they have become a serious parasite which affects game fish and key predator species in Lake Erie including lake trout, lake whitefish, chub and lake herring. Elimination of these key fish populations can allow the alewife, another invasive species, to explode in population, having adverse effects on many native fish species. An adult lamprey can kill 40 pounds of fish every 18 months, resulting in significant damage to the Great Lakes fishery and the multi-billion dollar industries that it supports.

Lampreys have teeth on their tongues, which they use to rasp holes into the sides of fish to suck their blood, eventually killing the host fish.  

Larvae have been found in the sediment at the bottom of the Cattaraugus creek and experts with the US Fish and Wildlife Service are applying lampricides to the water to try to kill the invader before it has a chance to mature.

These chemicals pose no unreasonable risk to the general population and the environment when applied at concentrations necessary to control larval sea lampreys, according to a release from the US Fish and Wildlife Service.  For more information...