Unsuspecting victims lured into deadly sex trap

A deadly love potion is showing promise in the long battle against sea lamprey in the Great Lakes.

A deadly love potion is showing promise in the long battle against sea lamprey in the Great Lakes.

For the second year in a row, scientists are using man-made copies of sex hormones drawn from males to attract the parasites into tributaries where they can be killed.

The practice increased capture rates when used for the first time in 2009.

This year, researchers are focusing on trying to cull large numbers of the invasive species (mouth shown) from Lake Superior, using the Upper Peninsula's Misery and Rock rivers as sex traps.

Sea lamprey spawn in rivers and streams but as adults they live in the lakes where can consume up to 50 pounds of prey fish in less than two years.

To read a Detroit Free Press article about these new efforts to reduce lamprey populations, click here.

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