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Piranhas are fish that live in the Amazon River and lakes in South America, known for their razor-sharp teeth and fierce attacks on other kinds of fish. But are they really as aggressive as they appear in films?

Read through our facts about piranhas and then take our piranha quiz to find out!

Size -ÌýTypical piranhas are, on average, are around 13 to 25cm long, with 10 razor-sharp teeth, usually around 4mm! Piranhas, such as the Red Bellied piranha, can grow slightly larger at 35-40cm long. The largest piranha breed is known as the San Francisco piranha. This mighty fish can actually grow up to a maximum length of 58cm! That's over double the length of an average piranha!

Diet -ÌýWhilst some piranhas do eat other animals like fish and snails, they do not choose to eat humans and prefer plants, seeds and even fruits! Some specific breeds such as the Tometes Camunani are completely vegetarian and only consume river weeds.

Relationship with humans - ÌýPiranhas are very shy creatures and tend to stay away from bigger prey, so the chance of a piranha ever attacking a human is very slim. They often only choose to attack bigger prey when the prey is already dying or deceased.

Piranhas should actually be more afraid of us than we are of them. They are known for having a very strong fishy smell and taste; the indigenous people of the amazon consider them a lovely meal.

Imagine, piranha and chips for tea!Ìý

Why do piranhas choose to travel in groups? -ÌýTo the surprise of many, a group of piranhas, also known as a school or shoal, isn't formed because the piranhas realise they'll be more dangerous when hunting together - it's actually a defensive tactic. Piranhas are very small and shy creatures and choose to travel together to keep each other safe from the much larger predators like crocodiles and dolphins; travelling in groups doesn't feel like such a bad idea anymore!Ìý

Different Species - Piranhas have one of the widest and most interesting collections of species we've ever seen; one of the coolest is the Red Bellied piranha. When threatened, this piranha can actually bark to warn off predators! How cool is that? There is also the Brandii piranha, which is known for being the most aggressive of any piranha and must be kept away from all others to avoid it attacking them. The Piraya is a very rare and expensive piranha known as the 'King' of piranhas and has golden streaks going up its flanks.Ìý

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