| Non-parasitic lamprey | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Cephalaspidomorphi |
| Order: | Petromyzontiformes |
| Family: | Petromyzontidae |
| Subfamily: | Mordaciinae |
| Genus: | Mordacia |
| Species: | M. praecox |
| Binomial name | |
| Mordacia praecox Potter, 1968 |
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Mordacia praecox, the non-parasitic lamprey, is a freshwater species of lamprey that occurs in south-eastern Australia. It has a thin eel-like body around 12 to 15 cm long, with two low dorsal fins on the back half. The skin is dark blue above and gray below. Its eyes are small, and located on the top of its head.
The non-parasitic lamprey is known only from the Moroya and Tuross Rivers in southern New South Wales. Unlike most other species of lamprey, it spends its entire life in fresh water. The ammocoetes (lamprey larvae) take around three years to reach maturity. Ammocoetes and juvenile adults are indistinguishable from Mordacia mordax, which also occurs within its distribution, but the adults are easily distinguished by their size and colouration.
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