Red-bellied piranha

Red-bellied piranhas not only eat fish and meat, but occasionally algae and aquatic plants.

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Red-bellied piranha

  • Habitat

    fresh water in South America

  • Food

    fish, insects, worms, shellfish, dead or injured (larger) animals

  • Lifetime

    10 to 15 years

  • Weight

    3.5 kilograms

  • Length

    33 cm

  • Number of eggs

    5000

  • Incubation time

    2 to 3 days

  • IUCN Status

    unexamined

  • EEP?

    no

  • 5000

    to how many eggs a female lays at a time

  • 15

    years, that's how old a red-bellied piranha can get

  • 3,5

    kilograms, that's how much a red-bellied piranha weighs on average

    • Lots of young piranhas

    Before laying eggs, the male of the red-bellied piranha makes a nest. He does this by making a pit at the bottom of the river. Females lay up to 5,000 eggs at a time. These eggs stick to each other and to aquatic plants. After just one week, the eggs hatch.

    Bad reputation

    Piranhas have sharp teeth. They mainly eat fish. Many people think piranhas are dangerous. Yet it happens very rarely that they attack people. No human has ever been killed by piranhas.