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How big is the biggest piranha?
13 inches long
The largest true piranha is the San Francisco piranha (Pygocentrus piraya), also known as the black piranha or black-tailed piranha. Native to the Sao Francisco River basin in Brazil, this aggressive omnivore grows to more than 13 inches long and weighs up to 7 pounds.
What is the size of an average piranha?
Size. Most piranhas don’t get any bigger than 2 feet (60 centimeters) long. For example, the red-bellied piranha and the piraya piranha grow to about 20 inches (51 cm) long, while the black spot piranha grows to about 11 inches (28 cm), according to FishBase.
How are the teeth of a piranha arranged?
The teeth are arranged in an interlocking triangular pattern which further improves their powerful bite. Most Piranha will have around 10 or so per jaw. They have a pronounced underbite meaning that the bottom row of teeth almost always permanently show.
Why are Piranhas hard to tell apart from other animals?
Piranhas are also hard to tell apart in terms of species, diet, coloration, teeth, and even geographic range. This lack of knowledge adds a bit of dark mystery to the creatures. Sure, they’re not cute and cuddly. But they may be misunderstood, and scientists are rewriting the piranha’s fearsome stereotype.
How many species of piranha are there in the world?
There is believed to be somewhere between 30 and 60 different piranha species. However, the exact number is unknown, debated and not yet scientifically proven. There are over 20 different species found in the Amazon river alone.
How big are piranhas and how big do they bite?
Though they are hardly as menacing as fiction suggests, piranhas do bite with quite a bit of force. In a 2012 study in Scientific Reports, researchers found that black (or redeye) piranhas ( Serrasalmus rhombeus )—the largest of modern species—bite with a maximum force of 72 pounds (that’s three times their own body weight).