They aren’t cute and they don’t look like something you’d want to hug. Yet, piranhas suffer from an unfortunate reputation. They’re not at all the monsters you may have heard about.
The more than 60 kinds of piranhas have lived in the rivers, streams, and lakes of South America for a very long time. Ancestors of today’s piranhas date back 25 million years. Their diet includes mainly fish, snails, insects, and some plant life. Piranhas aren’t especially interested in attacking people. Unless, that is, the person disturbs its eggs buried in a riverbed. Then, watch out!
