What is the Pacific lamprey?
The Pacific lamprey is a fish that looks like an eel with a powerful sucker-type mouth. Like salmon and steelhead, lamprey spawn in freshwater and then die, while their offspring migrate downstream to saltwater. On their return trip, they migrate up the face of the Willamette Falls, swimming when possible and using their mouths to attach to and move up the rocks. The lamprey is a traditional food source for Northwest Native Americans who harvest them at Willamette Falls. They are also used for fish bait, fish food and laboratory specimens.
