Pleased To Eat You...

The dangers of the Amazon river are many and varied and while some are legendary, yet others are known to only to an unfortunate few…

The Cetopsis catfish is one of the lesser-known yet no less formidable denizens of the Amazon, hunting and scavenging for prey in the deepest and murkiest parts of the river. Although rendered nearly blind by its environment, it is armed with an incredibly sensitive sense of taste to help it track down its victims, and a circular maw of razor-sharp teeth with which to make short work of them.

Hunting and attacking in large shoals, Cetopsis will use its maw to latch onto its prey, then spin in a rapid “death-roll” at up to three revolutions per second to rip the flesh away and leave behind a wound that looks similar to a bullet-hole. The hungry catfish will then force its way into the wound in order to devour its prey from the inside out.

Cetopsis catfish are often found inside the body cavities of larger fish such as the Red Tail Catfish, but human corpses have also been discovered in the Amazon River filled with many of these fish inside. There is no evidence however, that live and healthy humans have ever been the victims of these frenzied attacks, and it is far more likely that these opportunistic scavengers make a meal out of individuals who have already drowned or been incapacitated by alcohol.