It Turns Out That Piranhas Are Pretty Chatty Creatures…

I believe that it has become common knowledge that piranhas (a.k.a, the Hannibal Lecter of fish) are nasty and vicious little creatures, but a group of scientists have published in the Journal of Experimental Biology that piranhas (in particular the “red-bellied” type) are able to talk and communicate with each other.  As a matter of fact, they use three sounds, and each one means a particular and distinct thing.

Piranhas use one sound that is described as a bark used while scaring off and intimidating rivals, a second one resembles a drum-like beat used while they are chasing each other, and the remaining sound resembles a croak used while they attack one another.  In the case of the latter two sounds, those usually occur when the fish are fighting each other for sustenance. It turns out that the fish produce the sounds by vibrating their swim bladders at a rate of 150 times per second.  According to Eric Parmentier, the leading research scientist on the study representing the University of Liege, Belgium, he states that “eventually, if we understand the behaviour that’s associated with the sounds, we might be able to listen to the sea and explain to fishermen: ‘Now’s not the best time to start fishing’.”

So I raise a “Thank you” toast to Science for making that “Piranha 3D” movie make more sense now.

However, I still refuse to watch it again or buy it, though…

[Thanks to the BBC and The Journal of Experimental Biology]