Razor Sharp Teeth Piranha Fish: A victim of its own aggressive eating frenzy

ICMS, Inc Reports

By Tom Okure, Ph.D
July 30, 2021

Piranha are fish with razor sharp teeth found in the Amazon River. The Piranha Fish is a vicious fresh-water fish known in Venezuela as the ‘caribe.’ It is a common native fish in the lowland streams, floodplains, lakes and reservoirs in South America in the area known as the Amazon basin.

 The Red-bellied Piranha Fish

Piranhas consist of many varieties differing extensively in ecology and behavior depending on the specific species. There are about 20 known species of piranha, but only four or five of them pose any significant danger.

The red bellied species (or Pygocentrus nattereri) are notorious as ferocious predators that hunt their prey in schools. The red-bellied piranha is very aggressive and nasty in behavior and eats almost anything including other fish, sick animals and any human parts. Sick cattle that mistakenly bent their heads down to drink river water in the river have been known to be seized by the nose and mouth and dragged into the river and totally gobbled up by adult piranhas.

A bite from a piranha fish can be extremely powerful, painful and dangerous and is caused by the fish’s large jaw muscles closely attached to the tip of its jaw. Its strong jaws combined with the finely saw toothed shape teeth make the piranha fish adept at tearing flesh effectively. 

Red bellied piranha school 

Despite their often description as extremely dangerous in the media, piranhas normally do not represent a severe risk to humans. Even so, attacks do happen, particularly when the piranhas feel confined in dense groups and stressful situations especially during the dry season when the water level is low and food is relatively scarce.

Dense piranha fish groups swimming near fishermen may escalate the risk of attacks due to the commotion caused by struggling piranhas struggling over fish bait in the water. Children are more often attacked than adults because of splashing water which attracts piranhas.

If a person is injured or otherwise incapacitated and in the water, the risk of being attacked also increases. In areas where piranhas are common, warning signs are sometimes placed at high-risk locations and beaches are protected by a barrier.

Notwithstanding their terrible reputation, piranha fish perform a useful role in the system of things in the Amazonian jungles by being a part of the checks and balance apparatus of the ecosystem, eliminating the feeble and sick so that the strong can succeed.

-------------

Watch the Video...Razor Sharp Teeth Piranha Fish: A victim of its own aggressive eating frenzy

____________________________

All rights reserved by Tom Okure, Ph.D. CEO of Inter-Continental Mgt. Systems, Inc. (or ICMS Inc.). ICMS, Inc., is a multifaceted business and management consulting firm with its head office in Albany, New York