Creepy Video: Sea Lampreys Wildly Freak Out at the ‘Smell of Death’
- Posted on September 5, 2011 at 5:58pm by
Liz Klimas
- Print »
- Email »
Anyone smelling death would probably crinkle up their nose and say “Ew.” But nothing compares to the adverse reaction these sea lampreys have when the repellant odor is poured into their tank.
This experiment wasn’t just done for the gross factor of sea lampreys spewing out of the water. Sea lampreys are one of the most destructive invasive species in the Great Lakes. Researchers that Michigan State University are looking into the use of such repellants to prevent the ever growing sea lamprey population from entering certain areas.
New Scientist has more:
“Sea lampreys are one of the most costly and destructive Great Lakes’ invaders,” said Wagner, who published his results in the current issue of the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. “The effectiveness of the odor combined with the ease in which it’s obtained suggests that it will prove quite useful in controlling sea lampreys in the Great Lakes.”
. . .
“It’s kind of like a stop light, a noxious odor that causes them to run away from its source,” he said. “By blocking certain streams with these chemical dams, sea lampreys can be steered away from environmentally sensitive areas and into waterways where pesticides could be used more effectively to eliminate a larger, more concentrated population of sea lampreys.”
This approach would allow agencies that control invasive species to save money, use less pesticide and manage other resources more efficiently to have a bigger impact on controlling the invasive species, Wagner added.
Currently, pheromones are used to lure sea lampreys into traps, where they are then killed or sterilized. The researchers said that pheromones are not always as effective in waterways with many other chemical signals, but hope repellants will do the trick.
Popular Stories
Does Misstated Marathon Claim Prove Paul Ryan Is Dishonest? (POLL) 678 Comments
‘Jumah at the DNC’ Speaker: ‘Muslims Visited America Prior to Columbus’ & ‘It Was a Muslim’ Who Guided Him to the ‘New World’ 529 Comments
Paper Details Obama Admin’s Alleged Secret Note Sent to Iran: If Israel Attacks, We Won’t Get Involved 420 Comments
Obama: RNC Like Watching ‘Black-and-White TV’ Because Romney ‘Did Not Offer a Single New Idea’ 373 Comments
Roseanne Barr: Most Billionaires ‘Violent Pedophiles’ & ‘Heartless’ Cocaine Addicts 329 Comments
Faith
This Is the Creationists‘ Response to Scientist Bill Nye’s Viral Pro-Evolution Video Claiming They Harm Children 271 Comments- Pakistani Muslim Cleric Accused of Framing Disabled Christian Girl in Koran-Burning Case Read More
- ‘Made Up Religion’: TV Historian Enrages Muslims, Receives Threats After Producing UK Documentary Questioning Islam’s Beginnings 280 Comments
Meet the Controversial German Imam Accused of Brutally Beating His Wife & Pushing Sharia Law Read More
‘Self-Proclaimed Messiah’ & Unification Church Leader the Rev. Sun Myung Moon Has Died — Here’s His Life Story Read More
Business
President Obama Issues Major ‘Green Energy’ Executive Order 160 Comments- Germany’s Upcoming Court Ruling Will be Huge for the EU Read More
Ford Looks to Beat Toyota for Best-Selling Car in 2012 With This Model 147 Comments
Bernanke & QE3: Here’s What You Need to Know Read More- ‘Extortion’: Why Did the Labor Department ‘Drop the Hammer’ on Oregon Farmers? 300 Comments
Technology
- This Is the Creationists‘ Response to Scientist Bill Nye’s Viral Pro-Evolution Video Claiming They Harm Children 271 Comments
‘TaserDrone’: Hackers Weaponize Quadcopter With Actual ‘Shocking’ Technology Read More
Ever Heard of the Wild ‘Burning Man’ Festival in the Middle of the Nev. Desert? Here’s Your Primer Read More
Stanford Develops Technology ‘Better Than Steroids’ for Athlete Recovery Read More
Have You Pretended to Know What ‘the Cloud’ Is? You’re Not Alone Read More
Submitting your tip... please wait!
Comments (72)
DanWesson455
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 8:54amI act the same way every 28 days in my house. I just have to get the heck otta there.
Report Post »IlovemyAkita
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 12:14pmbwah hahahaha. Good one. Think about how she feels every 28 days. It sucks!
Report Post »swampbuck
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 8:14pmThats nasty…lol
Report Post »Tek
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 12:05amI like the fact that Google’s targeted ad for this video was for Axe Body Spray!
Report Post »staxmarshall
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 11:53pmI agree. The lampreys in this story do exibit a remarkable likeness to progressives, liberals, leftists and democrats. Blood sucking leeches. About that repellant? Merely mention the name “Jesus” around them and you’ll get the same effect.
Report Post »green_manalishi
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:38amI have bottled my own bum and griffter repellent, its scented with the scent and sweat of hard work
Report Post »The-Monk
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 11:15pmWho let these creatures into our waters in the first place? Maybe we should have put a fence up? Speaking of fences, does it work on illegal immigrants or Islamic jihadist or Union bosses?
Report Post »Where was the EPA in all this? Environmental Protection Agency means to protect our environment.
Oh, I’m sorry, I get it now…. the lampreys _are_ the EPA. And what they poured into the water was simply bleach or amonia or a mixture of both.
Anna Fallaxis
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 10:56pmDoes it work on Democrats? Let’s send them all some “bubble bath” for Christmas. Or just say the word “Christmas”, it will have the same effect.
Report Post »Libertarian B 4 Libertarians Were Cool
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 11:13pmI’d imagine soap has the same effect on liberals!
Report Post »ashestoashes
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 11:28pmIf you are a fisheman..please read this to identify this fish and learn what to do.
Report Post »http://www.mi-water-cmp.org/Ex-other_nuisance_species.htm
Hickory
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:16amIf you want to see Democrats flee, offer them a working job.
Report Post »swampbuck
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 8:16pm@ashestoashes.. I lived in northern Michigan for many years.. I have seen what these nasty creatures can do to a salmon or a trout not pretty..
Report Post »woodyenglish
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 10:44pmI see that some of you have NO EXPERIENCE in understanding what scientists are all about.They do what they want and expect US to obey the law. They also don’t care if they create a larger problem, because if they do they simply apply for another grant to continue their jobs so their children get to go to college and then they create another problem and apply for another grant and never actually attempt to fix the problem. Ask ANYONE who works the water for a living and they’ll be afraid to honestly answer due to repercussions and having to work within the system.
Report Post »ashestoashes
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 11:07pmThey were apparently removing them from the Great Lakes and relocating them…stupid..why didn’t they just destroy them? They prey on the edible fish like trout . And why would they relocate them to any area? That is like trying to save the peronas. They are now pouring these chemicals which are not supposed to harm the other fish but destroy the the sea lampreys before they have a chance to mature. I can’t believe that they relocated these things. I wonder where they relocated them ? At any rate, they probably haven’t done enough research on this chemical, but then when you think about Chernobly and Japan and all the uranium…what else is new?
Report Post »piper60
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 10:28pmSo—–let me get this straight—–the idiots are going to pour a whole bunch of chemicals into one of our lakes/streams, and the high and mighty EPA is o.k. with this???????????
Report Post »Hickory
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:18amIt’s ok if the administration is a part of it. The EPA is not a gardian of the envirnoment. It is the gardian of the Democratic party.
Report Post »Enuff Zenuff
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 12:34pm@ Hickory – Excellent distinction! – Thanks for that one.
Report Post »RA0725
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 10:08pmWow, it’s not nice to mess with nature. We have decades of unintended consequence and people keep on doing it. Stripers wiping out native trout fisheries. Grass eating carp depleting all aquatic growth in lakes. Salt cedar imported to control erosion and growing out of control and actually lowering water levels in rivers. You get the picture, it’s a very very long list. Oh, I‘d be remiss if I didn’t mention the wolves. Now there’s a good idea.
Report Post »zoro51
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 9:44pmbox em all send them to washingtons democrat party.. send them to the SOCIALIST wanna bea leader n all to the SOCIALISTS“friends” in offices for in 2012 ITS OVER FOR THEM.. all thier tax n spend fodder its OVER with .. hell if i smelled death id balk too,.. remember kids the SOCIALIST only makes speeches and BLAMES all for HIS own mistakes n HIS own made problems.. THIS is america not a 3 rd world dung hole nation WE are NOT SOCIALISTS we are NOT muslum we ARE christian nation NO shirea diareah law but AMERICAN LAW so sure send these lampres to washington dc… for theres NO life there,… the dems proved that
Report Post »deweydewmeyer
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 9:17pmI heard Chaz got a bono today. A lamprey finished her,… uh it …. off.
Report Post »V-MAN MACE
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 8:10pmDO NOT pour that RANCID NOXIOUS MIXTURE INTO MY WATER, IDIOT!
There’s ENOUGH disgusting toxic detritus in my WATER without you doing THAT.
Report Post »lonewolf57
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 9:17pmThe Democrat’s got you that bad?It ain’t too late.
Report Post »Rayblue
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:46pmWho has not worn one of these on their head after getting drunk at the Christmas party ?
Report Post »Ming The Merciless
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 8:09pm@RayBlue – more times than I care to admit! :-))
Report Post »Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 8:49pmChaz Bono wears one just below its belly button.
Report Post »dadsrootbeer
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:14pmSo how can we use it to get progressives to move to Europe.
Report Post »lanurse1
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:19pmLMAO~~good question!
Report Post »TSUNAMI-22
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:32pmThat’s easy, just impose an atmosphere of personal responsibility and self reliance and they’ll writhe in terror.
Report Post »tower7femacamp
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:40pmNext week in the news Sea Lampreys eat what‘s let of Bin Laden’s body forever !
Report Post »Salamander
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:44pmWow, it looks like the teamsters getting riled up for a visit to a tea party event!
Report Post »RightWrite
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:45pmInvasive and destructive? Sounds like illegal aliens.
Report Post »Salamander
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:45pmCan you imagine if they made such a cockroach repellect for use in, say, New York?
Report Post »Salamander
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:49pmHmm, I wonder if they couldn’t make such a thing to incorporate into surfboards and body boards (like for use in Australia)? (I’m not trying to be nasty-I’m really serious–even if it were an electronic device that repelled sharks by whatever neurological, scent or sound mechanisms as might be possible.) I’d bet the marine community (maritime, Navy, sailing, etc.) would be interested.
Report Post »lonewolf57
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 8:08pmDitto @ DADSROOTBEER
Report Post »holycow
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:13pmWhatever intervention is taken regarding controlling this problem, there are always unintended consequences. Man frequently interferes too much and the end result is rarely what was desired, however noble it may be. God designed nature to essentially take care of itself. How do we know that a resistant species of lake fish will not emerge if we do not let nature take its’ course. Just something to think about.
Report Post »Chris
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 8:04pmThese creatures don’t belong in the Great Lakes at all. They managed to sneak in when canals were built in the recent past so there are no natural predators and very little to control them. If they were where they belonged they would be part of the overall balance that would keep their numbers in check.
Report Post »Chuck Stein
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 10:17pmChris is right. Zebra mussels (from Europe by way of ships’ ballast tanks) are also hugely costly in the Great Lakes. Soon to arrive (via Chicago) are Asian Carp — these things jump out of the water (and can injure people) when a boat aproaches.
Report Post »Enuff Zenuff
Posted on September 6, 2011 at 12:41pm@CHRIS
Report Post »Not canals… I believe the lampreys, like the more recent Zebra Mussels, arrived in the ballast water of international ships that then dumped their ballast water in our Great Lakes. This lamprey problem has been around at least 40 years as I remember doing a report on them in Jr. High.
CURTWALL
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:08pmDid Barney Frank ripp another Fart?
Report Post »OhSuzieQ
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:58pmThanks for the site LoneWolf57. I didn’t know what they were..
Report Post »Echelon
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:57pmAll they had to do was dip Hoffa in the tank!
Report Post »lonewolf57
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:01pmtrue.
Report Post »Pajaken
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:55pmIts too bad we can’t develop something like this scent to keep democrats away from the election booths. That would solve 90% of our problems.
Report Post »Dale B
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:03pmLMAO- How true that is.
Report Post »squeaker
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:52pmwonder if the Sea Lampreys would run away from the smell of obambam
Report Post »YepImaConservative
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:42pm“Sea lampreys are one of the most destructive invasive species in the Great Lakes.”
Obama suppoters are one of the most destructive invasive species in the United States. And that odor… EW! Lol.
Report Post »BenInNY
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:37pmI saw recently on tv that spitting into a tank of lampreys has the same effect, think it might have been on Dirty Jobs
Report Post »AMERICA4EVER
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:46pmWonder if they can pour it on all liberals and keep them away from the rest of us?
Report Post »squeaker
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:54pmI had seen that same episode on dirty jobs… it was very strange… i didn’t realize it was Sea Lampreys
Report Post »shirelover
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 7:04pmit was Dirty Jobs, just watched it too. So funny! made it look like Mike had bad breath or something. it was Sea Lampreys, they were talking about how they are an invasive species
Report Post »lonewolf57
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:23pmGood job Michigan State University!
Report Post »BillAdams3277
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:19pmHopefully they will find a repellant for liberals, socialist and welfare recipients.
Report Post »Psychosis
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:31pmthey do ……………they have two
one is more commonly known as mace
the other is called a job
Report Post »biohazard23
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:17pmEwwwww….. That’s just….. ewwww…..
Report Post »MODEL82A1
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:16pmPETA will undoubtedly pursue criminal charges.
Report Post »1TrueOne55
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 6:32pmIsn’t PeTA the quintessential odour of death? When you see that they have recently abandoned the PETA franchise to create the “New Humane Society of the United States” to regain their loss of funds under the PETA brand they would not dare sue.
But for $19.99 per month you could help a poor neglected poodle or even save a sick cow from the slaughter house.
Report Post »