Abstract
This publication from five Czech ichtyologists summarizes the historical and current data about the lampreys. All three distinguished families, ten genera and 44 currently known species are presented.
Six Central European species are in detail described. The book contains the following chapters: Anatomy and morphology of lampreys, History of the development of taxonomical knowledge of lampreys, Evolution and genetics of lampreys, Paleontology, Importance of lampreys for mankind, Etymology and vernacular names of lampreys, Taxonomic overview of lampreys of the world and their zoogeographical distribution, Ontogenetic development of lampreys and their biology, Diseases and parasites of lampreys, Environmental damages caused by lampreys and their elimination, Monitoring of lamprey distribution, Lampreys of Central Europe, History and significance of lampreys in the Czech Republic, Threats and protection of lampreys, Literature (over 1000 items), Index of scientific names, Index of Czech names, Summary, Bibliography of publications on lampreys in the Czech and Slovak Republic (over 200 items) and Vernacular names of the Central European lampreys.