Who lives in the Amazon? The most dangerous monsters from the Amazon (10 photos)
The Amazon is home to many thousands of species of fish that are found nowhere else in the world. The most big fish The Amazon, which was named by local residents as arapaima, is a real giant, with some scientists classifying this species as the largest of those that live in freshwater rivers.
The freshwater arapaima is the largest fish in the Amazon, as it can reach approximately 2.5-3 m in length and weigh more than 200 kg. Despite the fact that 100 years ago large fish of this species were not a rare prey for local fishermen, nowadays even individuals weighing 50 kg are rarely found. The popularity of catching arapaima is explained by the fact that the meat of this fish is distinguished by its excellent taste qualities. The gradual decline of the arapaima population in the waters of the Amazon has attracted the attention of scientists to this species. Large arapaima are most often found in the Brazilian and Peruvian Amazon, but scientists believe that adult fish can move along the river bed, migrating for seasonal spawning in more clear waters. Arapaima are found throughout the Amazon, but not so often.
In fact, the arapaima is a truly amazing creature, because despite its large size, it can survive in fresh water, where the oxygen saturation level is not too high. The thing is that this amazing fish is able to breathe not only through its gills. She has a primitive lung, which allows her to compensate for the lack of oxygen necessary to nourish the tissues of such a large body. Arapaima, living in different parts of the Amazon, come up to breathe air every 20-30 minutes. Large individuals of arapaima prefer quiet backwaters, total area which does not exceed 140 m, of which there are many along the entire length of the river. It is the fact that this large fish lives in shallow backwaters, which are not very large, that makes it extremely vulnerable to fishermen.
The arapaima feeds mainly on bottom fish and crustaceans, but may also include in its diet some fruits that fall in abundance into the river during a flood. This fish has excellent hearing and sense of smell, so it can smell ripe fruits in the water even from a great distance. Adult arapaima are very caring parents. During the breeding season, which falls in November for these fish, they move closer to the sandy shores, where they dig a small depression where the female plays. After this, the male is constantly on duty near the hole with eggs, and the female drives away the fish that try to get closer. Thus, fish provide reliable protection for future generations. After hatching, the juveniles stay near the head of the adult and even rise to breathe with the parent. Only after 3-4 months the connection weakens, and the juveniles begin an independent life.
The abundance of food in the Amazon River causes arapaima to grow rapidly and gain weight. The number of arapaima in the waters of the Amazon is gradually decreasing, since if previously only large individuals were exterminated when hunting with harpoons, now the use of modern nets has made it possible to catch juveniles.
Black caiman
The largest individuals of this alligator reach 6 m in length. They have the reaction of a mongoose and the strength of a tiger. The most dangerous predators Amazons who will tear to shreds anyone who falls into their huge jaws.
Anaconda
Another huge predator that lives in local waters is the anaconda. This is the world's largest snake, weighing up to 250 kg. Anacondas reach 9 m in length and 30 cm in diameter. If such a snake wraps itself around a person, he will no longer be able to escape. These monsters love shallow water, so most spend time in the tributaries of the river.
Arapaima
These giants have armored scales, so they don’t even care about piranhas. Arapaima hunt mainly for smaller fish and birds, but sometimes they also attack humans. The fish grow up to 3 m in length and weigh up to 90 kg. The monsters are so ferocious that they even have teeth on their tongues.
Brazilian otter
Even the otters here are gigantic. These 2-meter animals hunt fish and crabs. However, there is strength in numbers: when they gather in flocks, they kill adult anacondas and even caimans.
Vandellia vulgaris (Brazilian vampire)
Bull sharks
Such cute little animals most often live in salty ocean water. Unfortunately, sometimes they swim into fresh waters and terrify local residents. Their jaws provide a bite force of 589 kg. After meeting with them, usually no one survives.
Electric eels
Two-meter eels can strike victims with a charge of up to 600 volts. And this is almost 3 times more than in the outlet. It seems like a killer tension, but it's not. It's not the discharge that kills. The victim simply stops breathing from painful shock, and she drowns in the water.
Common Piranha
These little creatures often appear in Hollywood horror films. And it’s not without reason that they gained fame as ruthless killers. The sharp teeth of these fish close together and tear the flesh to shreds. It is noteworthy that piranhas are scavengers. But they do not disdain fresh meat.
Mackerel hydrolic
These underwater bloodsuckers have truly vampiric fangs located on the lower jaw of the hydrolics. The victim is impaled on them like a stake, and can no longer escape anywhere. Hydroliks have special holes in their palates to hide such long fangs.
Brown pacu
These fish with human smiles are relatives of the previously mentioned piranhas. Although pacu prefer fruits and nuts, there are also cases of attacks on people.
The Amazon rainforest is one of the most interesting and at the same time unsafe places in the world, as it is inhabited by very dangerous creatures that can kill a person. So, here is a list of ten of the most unusual and amazing, but deadly animals that live in the basin of one of the longest rivers in the world - the Amazon.
Electric eel is a fish that lives in fresh waters Amazon, near the muddy bottom. They can grow from 1 to 3 meters and weigh up to 40 kg. An electric eel is capable of generating voltages up to 1300 V with a current strength of up to 1 A. For a person, such an electric shock is not fatal, but very painful and can even cause a heart attack.
This rare view Felids live in the rainforest, and are the largest cats in the Western Hemisphere (in the world, only lions and tigers are larger). Males (on average 90-95 kg, but there are individuals reaching 120 kg) are approximately 20% larger than females. The jaguar's diet consists of 87 different animals, from deer to mice. These predators attack people extremely rarely, mainly when they are forced to defend themselves.
A species of large crocodiles that grow up to 5 meters in length. At one time, these creatures were on the verge of extinction in the Amazon region, but strict laws against hunting, increased their numbers. Hunts at night, preferring to attack from ambush. The black caiman mainly feeds on fish (including piranhas), aquatic vertebrates, and larger individuals can attack livestock, jaguars, anacondas and humans.
The weight of an anaconda can reach approximately 100 kg and a length of 6 meters. It is one of the longest snakes in the world. Mainly leads an aquatic lifestyle, occasionally crawling ashore to bask in the sun, and sometimes crawling onto tree branches. It feeds on various quadrupeds and reptiles, lying in wait for them on the shore, and less often on fish. In nature, an adult anaconda has no enemies.
Piranhas
These fish are distinguished by sharp teeth and powerful jaws. They reach a length of up to 30 centimeters and a weight of up to 1 kg. They spend most of their time searching for prey, hunting in huge flocks. They feed on everything that comes their way, primarily fish.
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The Amazon rainforest is a huge ecosystem that is home to such strange and amazing creatures, like the jaguar, dart frogs and basilisks. However, the forest is the habitat of not only those creatures that prowl, run or crawl in its wilds. The depths of the Amazon River, the world's largest river, are home to creatures so amazing and scary that they make the movie Jaws seem like a pleasant and relaxing swim in the ocean.
10. Black Caiman
Essentially, the black caiman is an alligator on steroids. Black caimans can grow up to six meters in length, have larger and heavier skulls than Nile crocodiles and are apex predators in the waters of the Amazon River. This means that they are basically the king of the river, eating anything they can get their teeth into, including piranhas, monkeys, freshwater groupers, deer and anacondas.
Oh yeah, it's worth noting that they readily attack people. In 2010, a black caiman attacked a biologist named Deise Nishimura while she was cleaning fish on her houseboat. Even though she managed to fight it off, the black caiman took one of her legs with it. This caiman lived under her houseboat for eight months, apparently waiting for the right opportunity to attack.
9. Anaconda (Green Anaconda)
Continuing the theme of giant reptiles, we present to your attention the largest snake in the world, living in the Amazon River - the anaconda. Although reticulated pythons may be longer in body length, anacondas are much heavier. Female anacondas are typically larger than males and can weigh up to 250 kilograms. The anaconda's body length can be about 9 meters, and its body diameter can reach 30 centimeters. They are not venomous, but use their impressive muscular strength to constrict and strangle their victims, which include capybaras, deer, caimans and even jaguars. Preferring shallow waters that allow them to sneak up on their prey, they usually live not in the Amazon River itself, but in its branches.
8. Arapaima
Arapaima also known as "puraruku" or "paiche" is a giant predatory fish, which lives in the Amazon and adjacent lakes. Equipped with armored scales, they swim without much fear in waters infested with piranhas, and are themselves quite effective predators, feeding on fish and the occasional bird. Arapaima prefer to stay close to the surface because in addition to the oxygen they receive from the water through their gills, they also need to take breaths of air when rising to the surface of the water. Appearing on the surface, they make a characteristic sound similar to a cough. Their body length can reach 2.7 meters and weight 90 kilograms. These fish are so fierce that they even have teeth on their tongues.
7. Brazilian Otter (Giant Otter)
Brazilian otters are the largest freshwater otters. Brazilian otters have the longest body length of the entire mustelidae family, and adult males can grow up to two meters when measured from head to tail. Their diet mainly consists of fish and crabs, which they hunt in family groups of three to eight individuals. They can eat up to four kilograms of seafood per day. However, many people think they are cute, but don't let their cuteness fool you, they are no more harmless than the other creatures on this list. There have been cases where groups of Brazilian otters have killed and eaten adult anacondas. They can also kill a caiman with ease. During observation of one group of Brazilian otters, it was observed that they killed and ate a five-foot caiman in 45 minutes. Although their numbers are dwindling at a fast pace, in particular due to human intervention, they are considered one of the most strong predators tropical forest Amazons, hence their unofficial nickname “river wolves”.
5. Bull Sharks
Although bull sharks typically live in salty waters ocean, they feel great in fresh waters. There have been cases where they swam so far down the Amazon River that they were seen in the city of Iquitos in Peru, almost 4,000 kilometers from the sea. Their specific kidneys sense changes in salt levels in the water and adapt accordingly. And you definitely wouldn't want to meet one of them in the river. These sharks often grow up to 3.3 meters in length, and the weight of especially large specimens caught by fishermen reached 312 kilograms. Like other sharks, bull sharks have several rows of sharp, triangular teeth and incredible strong jaws, providing a bite force of 589 kilograms. They are also not at all averse to feasting on humans, and it is this type of shark that most often attacks people (the second and third places are occupied by tiger and great white sharks, respectively). The above characteristics, coupled with the fact that these sharks prefer to live near densely populated areas, have led many experts to consider them the most dangerous sharks in the world.
4. Electric Eels
Electric eels are actually more closely related to catfish than other eels, but you probably wouldn't want to get close enough to them to find out for yourself. They grow up to 2.5 meters in length and can produce electrical discharges using special electrical organs located along their sides. These discharges can reach 600 volts, which is five times the power of the average American outlet and is enough to knock a horse unconscious. While a single shock is not enough to kill a healthy adult, repeated shocks can lead to cardiac or respiratory failure, and cases of people passing out and drowning after being attacked by an electric eel are not uncommon. Many of the disappearances reported near the Amazon River have been linked to eel attacks, which stunned people with electricity and left them drowning in the river's waters. Fortunately for our species, even though eels are carnivores, they typically stick to a diet of fish, amphibians, birds and small mammals. They detect prey by sending out small, 10-volt discharges using their electrical organs, and upon finding it, kill it by releasing powerful discharges.
3. Red-Bellied Piranhas
The quintessential horror of the Amazon River, so frightening that it has inspired a number of controversial Hollywood films, the common piranha is actually a scavenger first and foremost. However, this does not mean that piranhas do not attack healthy creatures. They can grow up to 30 centimeters in length and usually swim in large groups, so they pose a significant threat to most animals. Like all piranha species, common piranhas have incredibly sharp teeth that are arranged in a row on the upper and lower jaws of these fish. These teeth are completely closed, making them an ideal tool for tearing and tearing the flesh of the victim. Their fearsome reputation mainly comes from "fever feeding", where a whole group of piranhas surround the hapless victim and eat his flesh to the bone in a few minutes. Such attacks are usually the result of prolonged hunger or provocation.
2. Mackerel Hydrolic (Payara / Vampire Fish)
Despite their diminutive name, mackerel hydrolyx is a ferocious predator, capable of catching and swallowing fish whose size is equal to half theirs own body. Considering that their body length can reach up to 1.2 meters, this is quite an impressive feat. Most of their diet consists of piranhas, which should give you some idea of just how ferocious these fanged fiends can be. Two fangs grow from their lower jaw, which can grow up to 15 centimeters in length. They use these fangs to literally impale their prey on them after they lunge at them. In fact, their fangs are so large that they have special holes in their upper jaw to prevent them from piercing themselves with the fangs.
1. Brown Pacu
One creature that lives in the Amazon River is much scarier to men than to women. The brown pacu is a much larger relative of the piranha, well known for its distinctive human-like teeth. Unlike many of the other creatures on this list, pacu are actually omnivores, and the majority of their diet consists of fruits and nuts. Unfortunately, for some pacu, “nuts” are not just what falls from the trees. Yes, you understood correctly. There have been several cases of pacu biting off the testicles of male swimmers. In Papua New Guinea, several men died after a paku mistook their genitals for easy prey. Oh yeah, don't worry if you can't get to the Amazon to see these monsters robbing men of their dignity - they've already started spreading across Europe.
The depths of the Amazon hide things that modern horror directors have never dreamed of.
A huge closed ecosystem, which is essentially the entire basin great river, as if specially populated by incredibly tenacious, incredibly dangerous and incredibly bloodthirsty creatures, an encounter with which for a person can only end in one outcome.
Black caiman
The largest predator in the entire Amazon basin. The black caiman grows up to five meters long and can weigh half a ton. Natural born killers are the so-called apex predators - that is, capable of killing and devouring any animal in their habitat. 
Anaconda
The meeting between man and anaconda will be the last. The nine-meter snake swims well and is even capable of diving. An adult anaconda has practically no enemies in nature, unless it comes across a black caiman on a narrow path, and such cases have actually happened. 
Brazilian arapaima
Tropical freshwater fish, one of the largest freshwater fish in the world. This predator feeds not only on fish, but also on small animals that come to drink. 
Snout shark
No, not because she’s stupid - it’s just the shape of their face. Snout shark, or bull shark, is usually found in coastal waters and happily makes his way into the rivers. This is one of the most aggressive species of sharks that will attack humans without a second thought.
Electric eel
Perhaps one of the strangest creatures on our planet. Special electrical organs allow eels to generate voltages up to 1300 V. A sort of floating bare wire, with positive charge on the muzzle and negative in the tail. With one blow, an eel can stun a horse, but a human heart will simply stop forever. 
Brown pacu
You can say that I'm packing cousin piranhas. But their teeth are square and resemble human ones. For what? Yes, to tear off larger pieces of meat from the victim.
Giant otter
The cute animal, weighing thirty kilograms, is not very timid, unlike its European relatives. You shouldn’t approach a giant otter for a joint selfie, you might end up without fingers. Locals The otters were nicknamed “river wolves”: gathering in real packs, they boldly attack larger predators. 
Kandiru
Another name is the Brazilian vampire. The tiny catfish usually parasitizes other fish, crawling into the gills and drinking blood there. But she absolutely doesn’t care who the victim will be and which hole she will swim into. Thanks to Kandir, smart people in the Amazon never relieve themselves. Can you guess why?
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