Smiley face on my salmon

[Sangstercraft]

picture says it all. I caught this last year in the SOG. The face was not raised or bumpy feeling like a healed wound. It wasn’t fresh like a lamprey sucker, plus the fish was big enough it wasn’t in fresh water for a few years.
the face couldn’t be rubbed off either. It was like it was part of the fish.
Anyone know what the heck this is about?

 

[Sangstercraft]

 

[Bryan Allen]

lamprey.... I have seen that before with a small 8" lamprey still attached

 

[Sangstercraft]

lamprey.... I have seen that before with a small 8" lamprey still attached

Caught in the ocean? How big was the fish?

 

[Capt. Jack]

Maybe he got a tattoo?

 

[Bryan Allen]

It was attached to a 5lb coho off Point Grey

 

[Sangstercraft]

It was attached to a 5lb coho off Point Grey

Crazy. I wonder if it latched on when it was still in the river, and grew along with the fish. Lampreys sure are disgusting critters.

 

[sasqman]

Apparently Lampreys live in saltwater.

RANGE: The species lives around the Pacific Rim from Japan through Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California, down to Baja California, Mexico. MIGRATION: Pacific lampreys migrate from freshwater streams to the Pacific Ocean, then return upstream to spawn.

 

[Sangstercraft]

Apparently Lampreys live in saltwater.

RANGE: The species lives around the Pacific Rim from Japan through Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California, down to Baja California, Mexico. MIGRATION: Pacific lampreys migrate from freshwater streams to the Pacific Ocean, then return upstream to spawn.

Never knew that - strange how we never catch ocean fish with them attached.

 

[CRGreg]

definitely a Lamprey bite.