Lampreys are among the most evolutionarily distinct vertebrates, representing one of only two extant jawless fish lineages. Despite their global significance, Australian lampreys remain poorly understood, with substantial knowledge gaps in their ecology, distribution and threats. This presentation will provide a primer on lampreys globally and in Australia before bringing together findings from recent research alongside preliminary results from ongoing field surveys and the Australian Fish Genomics Initiative lamprey project, highlighting how this research is rapidly expanding our understanding of one of Australia's least-known freshwater vertebrate groups. The recent confirmation of the Endangered Australian brook lamprey (Mordacia praecox) in Queensland, more than 1,500 km north of its previously recognised range, prompted targeted surveys across eastern Queensland to search for additional populations. Preliminary findings indicate the presence of multiple isolated populations that may represent previously undescribed taxa, highlighting the risk of "silent extinction", where unique evolutionary lineages disappear before they are formally recognised and become eligible for legislative protection. Building on these findings, ongoing field surveys and whole-genome sequencing and population genomic analyses are beginning to resolve species boundaries and evolutionary relationships among isolated Queensland populations. Together, these data provide new insights into the ecology, distribution, evolutionary history and conservation of Australian lampreys, while highlighting the practical challenges of conserving cryptic diversity, including previously unrecognised populations, undescribed taxa and lamprey species pairs.