Ever wondered what would happen if you fell into a piranha-infested pond? Here's the truth

Updated on December 5, 2023 at 3:32 PM

In the 'extreme experiences' category, after freediving with sharks and climbing Mount Everest, would you be willing to swim in water infested with piranhas?

GPS point: 3° 27' 55.098" S 62° 12' 57.172" W. You're living one of your childhood dreams: exploring the Amazon jungle. Suddenly, you slip and fall headfirst into the water. Only it's infested with piranhas. As you try to rise to the surface, you are reminded of several films featuring these small fish thirsty for flesh and blood. You're already imagining your last moments. But are you right? What could really happen? Here's the truth.

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An ominous fish?

Small but mighty. Piranhas may measure less than 50 cm on average, but the mere mention of their name is enough to make even the most seasoned adventurer tremble. They are often described as bloodthirsty and voracious, capable of devouring a cow in a matter of minutes. It was American President Theodore Roosevelt who witnessed this nonsensical scene, recounted in his best-selling book Through the Brazilian Wilderness published in 1914, that greatly fueled their reputation. But recent analyses call for more moderation.

Drawing, among other things, on the research of Herbert Richard Axelrod, an expert in the study of tropical fish, a study tempers the scene Roosevelt witnessed. Red piranhas, which in the space of a few minutes had left only the carcass of the cow, had been starving for days in order to ensure the show at the right moment.

To survive, or not to survive

While the red piranha, which can live in groups of between 10 and 100 individuals, is the one most often highlighted, there are in fact over 30 species of piranha. Some are omnivorous, others carnivorous, while others feed only on the scales of other fish. According to the new findings, fatal attacks on humans are rare. While bites are not impossible, they are mostly of the exploratory variety, like shark bites, and occur in certain settings: to defend their young, when piranhas are handled or when the fish is squared off directly in the water.

So what will become of you after your little fall? If you can't be 100% sure, the chances are very good that... nothing much will happen to you. Unless you fall head first onto a rock or a crocodile, but that's another story. Experts simply advise you to get out of the water using slow movements to avoid waves and splashes that could stress piranhas or even attract other types of predator. After this little experiment, you can officially boast of having survived piranha-infested waters.