Red piranha
Pygocentrus nattereri
No photo yet
The red-bellied piranha lives in the Amazon, Paraguay, Paraná and Essequibo basins. Despite its reputation, it is an omnivorous opportunist: it eats fish, insects, worms, as well as seeds and fruit. Juveniles school; adults form loose groups with a hierarchy and do not hunt in packs. Its bite is serious. It spawns in flooded vegetation in the rainy season. It was introduced to China, where it became invasive.
- Scientific name
- Pygocentrus nattereri
- Family
- Serrasalmidae
Fact sheet
General
- Water
- Freshwater
- Group
- Fish
Taxonomy
- Family
- Serrasalmidae
- Order
- Characiformes
- Synonyms
- Pygocentrus altus, Pygocentrus piraya, Pygocentrus stigmaterythraeus, Pygocentrus ternetzi, Rooseveltiella nattereri, Serrasalmo piranha, Serrasalmo ternetzi, Serrasalmus nattereri, Serrasalmus ternetzi
Origin
- Native region
- América do Sul
Water
- Temperature
- 24–28 °C
- pH
- 5.5–7.5
- General hardness (GH)
- 2–12 °dGH
Size and lifespan
- Adult size
- 35 cm
- Minimum tank (volume)
- 1,296 L
- Minimum tank (length)
- 240 cm
Behavior
- Social life
- School
- Swimming level
- Middle
- Diet
- Carnivore
Care
- Care difficulty
- Moderate
Conservation and trade
- IUCN status
- Least concern (LC)
Spotted wrong data on this page? Let us know