The photo above accompanied an email from Footloose which read…
“I hope this fish has not swam upstream into our territorial waters and get served as one of the signature dishes at ZubuDagat.
Cheers,
Footloose”
And accompanied by this description:
“Penis-eating fish Native to the Amazon and a cousin to the piranha, the pacu has become a popular aquarium fish. The problem is they sometimes outgrow their tanks and then the owners drop them into lakes. That’s how wildlife officials believe a pacu got into the Concho River. The fish is famous for biting off the testicles of fisherman in places like Papua New Guinea. They call it “the ball cutter.””
Source, here.
Frankly, I laughed for a good 30 seconds, but decided to research further. Particularly since I wanted to know why a South American fish was introduced to Papua New Guinea to begin with (it was, as a potential food source). Lucky for those who enjoy skinny dipping in brackish water, it seems the reputation as a “ball muncher” is exaggerated and CNN had to do a report to debunk the claims, here… Turns out they are indeed nut eaters, but as in fruit and nuts. They’re vegetarian. :)
Naughty Footloose, naughty. :)
11 Responses
MM, may I ask how lake or river-dwelling fish like the pacu could get fruit and nuts for sustenance? Or is that what they would normally be fed if raised in a home aquarium?
As you know, the Amazon floods its banks, swells and contracts over forested terrain in the course of a year and when the water level is at flood, there would be lots of fruits and low hanging nuts (pardon the expression) within munching reach of the fish.
I remember about six years ago, a friend of mind name Rommel had bought one this fish and stuck it in his octagon aquarium. Since the pet store owner where he bought mentioned the same thing that it is related to piranha, Rommel fed it with beef heart, a few slices a day before you know about 3 years later that thing was about 24″ in diameter. Poor fish could only move side to side. He indeed up donating it to California Academy of Science Steinhart Aquarium in Golden Gate Park/SFCA.
Mmm, fish with a slight nutty flavor.
Since we’re on the topic of fish, not too long ago, some reports surfaced about the frequency of mislabeling of fish. Most “processed” fish (e.g. filleted) were being sold as one species but were really a cheaper knock-off. Most people wouldn’t be able to tell the difference anyway.
https://www.livescience.com/25424-fish-fraud-mislabeling-nyc.html
The most “toxic” mislabeling cases were “white tuna” was actually “escolar” which has some indigestible oils in its flesh. If I’m not mistaken, more popularly known as “gindara” in the Philippines.
ball muncher, hahaha!
The fish has good taste!!!!LOL
Hahahaha! Laughing but must admit it was scary for a moment there (even if I would technically be “safe” from a ball muncher)!
This somehow gives the expression “He does not have enough to feed a fish” an entirely new meaning.
will they settle for Rocky Mountain oyster?
Mart: “nutty flavor” – good one!
I am glad that 1) I have no nuts for this fish to munch on, and 2) they’re vegetarians pala.
As for fish mislabeling: I read the article… and… 0_o oh my!
Ok CNN…their teeth may not be as razor sharped as that of their cousin, the pirranha nonetheless….still gives me the shivers!