Diver spots elusive ‘vampire fish’ for first time in decades in California river

Diver Karl Bly took a video he shot this week of a “vampire fish” he saw in the American River in Sacramento — the second one he’s seen in 30 years.

“Videoed the second lamprey of the season and the second one I’ve seen in 30 years .... just a peaceful swim ...,” Bly captioned a video he posted on Facebook Wednesday.

Lamprey, nicknamed “vampire fish” for their prominent teeth they use for feeding, are born in freshwater and then come back after migrating to the ocean to spawn, Peter Tira, public information officer for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, told CBS13.

The fish are native to the American River and California and despite their namesake, the fish don’t hurt humans, according to Tira.

“They are not harmful at all to people,” Tira said, according to the station.

Bly told Active Norcal that he has had “sporadic sightings” of baby lamprey, but seeing adult vampire fish is more rare.

“None more than 5 inches long and a few years ago I found half of a full-grown but dead lamprey. But this is the first full 24-inch lamprey that I’ve seen since like the 1970s,” he said, according to the publication.

Although lampreys don’t bite people, they use their ‘sucker-like mouth” to latch onto prey, Active Norcal reported.

The lamprey is considered a “species of concern” and has declined in numbers in Southern California and the Columbia River basin in the Pacific Northwest, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Adult lamprey range from 15-25 inches in size and have been caught 62 miles off the West Coast and depths from 300-2,600 feet, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.