Piranha found in the River Thames

Tropical fish experts were stunned when they heard of a piranha being fished out of the muddy River Thames in London.

A 10 centimetres long piranha, nativly from the Amazon in Brazil, was found on the deck of a work boat. It had been dropped there by a seagull that was passing overhead.

On of the men on board the vessel said "It was very fresh and had obviously only just died. You could see the marks made by the seagull's beak on its back,"


The fish was taken to the London Aquarium for experts to see what it was exactly. Curator Paul Hale confirmed it was a red-bellied piranha and said it was unlikely the piranha swam the distance from Brazil to England on its own.

"We imagine it was probably released (by someone into the river) and then floated to the surface, where it was picked up by one of the hungry seagulls and deposited onto the boat," Paul Hale said.

Londoners don't have to be afraid though. Warm-water fish like the piranha can't survive in the cold Thames water.

Posted in Animals by Paul van der Maas