Facts about Piranhas

  • Piranhas are predatory tropical fishes living in fresh rivers of Central America, mainly in the Amazon. The representatives of piranhids have a very developed sense of smell – they smell blood for a few tens of meters.
  • Piranhas became famous for their sharp teeth, atypical for other fish species, in size from 15 to 40 cm.
  • The upper and lower teeth, closing, do not leave a gap between the rows. Therefore, fish for a second cut off a victim of a piece of meat, swallowed and attacked again.
  • If we compare the strength of the piranha bite (taking into account the size of its body) with any other animal or fish, then the piranha bite is considered to be the most powerful of all animals inhabiting the Earth, including. Stronger than dinosaurs.
  • Imagine for a moment what would have been such a fish weighing more than a kilogram? After all, a large flock of waterfowl predators can eat a bull in 10-15 seconds.
  • However, piranhas are not as bloodthirsty as they are spoken about and never fed.
  • On the banks of the Amazon, of course, there have been cases when they bitten people, but this is not a mass phenomenon. True, sometimes the bites were serious. Such situations are more regarded as an accident.
  • In addition, piranhas, as it turned out, are useful creatures. They purify the rivers from carrion, sick and weak animals. And eat not only meat. Some of their diet is made up of algae.