Pygocentrus nattereri Red Pirana Fish Osteichthyes Actinopterygii Serrasalmidae

Stuffed Pirahna Fish Red Piraña Pygocentrus nattereri Osteichthyes Actinopterygii Serrasalmidae, with pedestal, cm 17.4, prepared in Brazil.

Family: Serrasalmidae.
Common name: Pirana, Piranha, Piraña or "Piragna".

N.B. The item appears with various small holes on the body caused by moths, as unfortunately it has not been well preserved. It has been completely disinfested with paradichlorobenzene for many months, so it is no longer parasitized and should only be restored, if deemed necessary, by filling the small holes.

N.B. this is a dried fish for collection, not a live one to be raised in an aquarium!
It can be exposed to the air, or in an airtight case (even periodically inside a box) preferably with camphor or other anti-parasitic inside to keep away any moths, taking care not to expose it to heat sources, direct sunlight, outdoors, rain or humidity: it is still a dried dead animal. In all cases it does not emit any bad odor.

Serrasalmidae is a family of freshwater fish of the order Characiformes.
Many species belonging to this family are commonly known by the noun piragna (plural "piragne"), more commonly indicated by the Portuguese and Spanish piranha and piraña. These terms, although feminine, are often mistakenly used in the masculine.
Serrasalmids have a rather tall body and compressed at the sides, with powerful muscles and can move very quickly. The most distinctive feature of the species is undoubtedly the mouth, similar to a trap. The very pronounced jaw is armed with a row of large, very sharp triangular teeth, the edges of which coincide perfectly with those of the teeth in the upper jaw, smaller but equally sharp. This structure, together with the powerful muscles of the jaws, makes the piranha's mouth an extremely efficient tool, capable of cutting off a morsel of meat from the prey cleanly and with a single bite.
Serrasalmids are gregarious fish: they form very large groups that sometimes populate entire stretches of rivers. They are voracious hunters, but the temperature of the water seems to influence their behavior, to the point that the same individual can sometimes even assume a herbivorous diet.
Normally it attacks other fish and small aquatic animals and only occasionally attacks large animals that enter the water, but when it happens the result is devastating. The danger of some species lies in their number: a medium-large school of a few hundred individuals can strip a sheep or a horse in a few minutes. However, despite its bad reputation, the piranha performs an important function as a "scavenger" of the river, eliminating the carcasses of dead animals, preventing them from rotting and keeping the waters clean.
Serrasalmids are widespread in the fresh waters of South America, in the hydrographic basins of the Amazon River, the Orinoco, the Rio de la Plata and in the rivers of Guyana (where they are called Pirai) and Paraguay.