A fish that gets into the bladder. Candiru catfish is the most bloodthirsty fish in the Amazon. Myths and facts

Tropical fish - the common Vandellia or Candiru (Latin Vandellia cirrhosa), (English Candiru) lives in the Amazon basin and terrifies the local population. This is a small catfish, although some species reach 15 cm.

Local residents are afraid of this fish because it can swim into the anus, vagina, or - in the case of small specimens - into the penis of a naked person all the way to the bladder. It feeds on blood and surrounding tissues, which can cause severe pain. Infection in humans is extremely rare. The common vandellia finds its victims by the presence of ammonia in the water, released from the gills during the breathing process of the fish or, in the case of humans, from the urethra.

The candiru does not have a sucker, but the gill covers have spines that hold it in narrow channels. Its removal is possible only surgically.

Without surgical intervention, an ordinary vandellia often cannot be removed. In most cases, operations occur without consequences. Traditionally, the juices of two plants (in particular, genipa) are used, which are injected directly into the place of attachment of the fish, which then dies and decomposes. Without medical attention, lesions of common vandellia can lead to death. The catfish always dies because it cannot get out of the human body, since humans are not a typical owner of the candiru.

Nevertheless, they consider it one of the most dangerous fish in the Amazon, and in the same places live electric eels, predatory piranha fish, freshwater stingrays, not to mention the giant reptiles - anacondas and caimans.

Often, when swimming, local residents, to protect themselves from candiru, wear a kind of swimming trunks made from coconut shells or palm fibers, and where there are a lot of these catfish, they avoid entering the water at all. Although the candiru is undemanding to the oxygen regime, it is unlikely to exist for a long time in the bladder and ducts of terrestrial animals.

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animals
Type: Chordates
Class: Ray-finned fish
Squad: Catfish
Family: Vandelliaceae
Genus: Vandellia
View: Common vandellia (Vandellia cirrhosa)

It is not without reason that the Amazon River and its surrounding areas are considered one of the most dangerous places on the planet. Surviving in those conditions is not easy, competition between species is growing, and the struggle for survival has long reached the scale of a real war. It is not surprising that in the process of evolution the inhabitants had to acquire sharp claws, powerful muscles, powerful jaws, or at least a camouflage color. Everyone survives as best they can.

When asked which creature should be considered the most dangerous among all the inhabitants of the Amazon, many people mention the crocodile, anaconda, and piranha in the answer. However, if you ask local residents about this, their answer will be completely different.

They are convinced that the most terrible inhabitant of the murky Amazonian waters is the inconspicuous candiru fish.

External features

This fish is one of the varieties of catfish. Adults of this species rarely reach a decimeter in length. Most fish are smaller. The following photo of a candiru fish will help you get an idea of ​​its size.

It has an elongated, puny body, nondescript color, and a relatively small head with a small mouth. Nature has not endowed her with powerful fangs or any other organs for attack and defense. Looking ahead, let's say that it is not even poisonous in any way.

Why does this fish bring such horror to the natives and tourists? The answer lies in her behavior.

Victim selection and attack

In the next photo we see how the victim was attacked by two candiru at once. Their heads are located behind the gill arch.

For a long time, scientists believed that vampire fish navigate by the ammonia smell, which is released when the fish breathes along with the excreted water. However, today this issue is controversial.

It is possible that smell does not play any role, and candiru navigate only with the help of excellent vision.

In any case, having chosen a fish as a victim, the blood-sucking catfish sticks its head behind the gill arch, spreads the spines on its head, bites into the flesh and begins to actively absorb blood. They eat kandira quickly; in such conditions there is no time for ceremonies. Having satiated itself in just a minute or two, the fish releases the victim. The belly of a well-fed fish increases noticeably.

Information about attacks on people

Modern medicine does not deny that attacks on people are possible, however, according to official sources, the bad reputation of the candiru is exaggerated.

For a long time it was believed that it was the ammonia contained in the urine that attracted these fish, and they confused the genitals of people with their usual victims. Guided by the stream of urine, the fish can penetrate the urethra, or, after missing a little, end up in the vagina and even the anus. However, today it has been established that the fish also sees perfectly. Probably, being hungry, she is not too picky, and therefore attacks everything that attracts her.

In any case, you should not swim where the candiru fish lives, and even more so in those places you should not urinate in the water.

Myths and reality

Researchers of these creatures have repeatedly stumbled upon unusual information. Modern scientists have at their disposal many records left by their colleagues in the past. However, not all of them stand up to critical scrutiny.

For example, in the 19th century it was believed that a fish jumps out of a reservoir and “flies” into the urethra, heading up the stream of urine. But to pull off such a trick, the kandir would need to break several laws of physics. Today it has been established that this is impossible.

The issue of candiru attacks on people continues to be studied. There are very few cases, and therefore materials for research.

But the fact that the candiru can climb up the urethra, not only the female one, but also the narrower and longer male one, has been confirmed. X-ray data showed that the vampire catfish can reach the bladder. But it has no reverse...

Native Methods

In addition to this method, residents of the coastal areas of the Amazon try to use protective devices that mechanically prevent fish from entering the body. Before bathing, they apply tight bandages to the genitals and even construct complex structures from coconut shells. Such structures can also protect against piranha bites.

Official science has known about the use of a drink made from jagua fruits by the natives since at least 1941. However, the effectiveness of the method cannot be confirmed, so no drugs based on it are currently being developed.

Symptoms, treatment, consequences

Today, the only recognized method is surgery. In some cases, candiru fish that have settled shallowly can be removed using a probe.

Fortunately, this fish is not found either in Russia or in other countries located far from the Amazon. It is endemic to South America. Only those who plan to visit its natural habitats should be afraid of an unwanted encounter.

Candiru or Vandellia catfish (lat. Vandellia cirrhosa) translated from Latin means “freshwater fish”. It is found in the Amazon River and its tributaries. Local residents consider the candiru to be much more dangerous than the piranha. The length of the fish is about fifteen centimeters, but the most common candiru catfish are the size of a matchstick. In appearance, it is an almost transparent and acne-shaped fish.

The inhabitants of these places explain their fear of vandellia by the fact that when they get into the internal genital organs of a naked person, small representatives of this species of catfish make their way deep into the person’s body right up to the bladder. Feeding on blood, the candiru causes unbearable pain to the victim. Although such cases are quite rare. When choosing a victim, the candiru catfish is guided solely by the presence of ammonia in the water, which is formed when the fish breathes or when a person urinates.

It is quite difficult to remove Vandellia catfish without medical assistance. Most often, for these purposes, they resort to surgical intervention, which occurs without any special consequences for the person. According to tradition, the juice of two types of plants (usually genipa) is injected into the area affected by the fish, and the candiru catfish dies and the process of decomposition occurs.

If you neglect the help of medical personnel, vandellia infection can be fatal. In the case of a person, the candiru catfish cannot get out of the body, since its typical host is fish, not people. Therefore, the death of the Vandelia catfish in the human body is inevitable.

Despite its small size - 2-3 mm in thickness, it can swell significantly and with its sharp fins cling to the body of the victim. The only way to remove it is surgery. Local residents fear her more than piranhas.

Let's find out WHY?

The candiru is clearly not very successful in growth, and individuals are usually found no larger than a matchstick. And his body is thin and skinny, so he is almost transparent. Having become hungry, the candiru begins to search for a victim - and he is looking for some larger fish. The excellent sense of smell of the Vandellia catfish helps to find it, even in the murky, opaque waters of the Amazon.

When the candiru feels (feels) the characteristic flow of water thrown out by the fish through the gills when breathing, and the catfish also catches the smell of ammonia (a metabolic product of fish, which is partially eliminated from their body through breathing), it rushes forward.

Having found a fish, the candiru literally crawls into the gap under the gill cover, and then securely attaches itself to the gills of its prey. He does this with the help of special spikes located on his fins, so much so that now it is impossible to get rid of him by any force, even by the most powerful stream of water passing through the gills.

Now the catfish starts eating. He expertly bites a hole in the tissue of the fish's gills, from which blood begins to ooze, and the kandiru begins a bloody meal. This was the basis for his other nickname - the “Brazilian vampire”. He eats quickly, taking only half a minute to two minutes to eat until he is completely full.

And what's so scary about that, you ask?!

And the worst thing happens when the catfish makes a mistake when choosing an owner... And then everything doesn’t end well for both the fish and the victim, which can be either a person or another mammal...

Although human lesions are extremely rare, the consequences for the victim are severe... Here it also feeds on blood and surrounding tissues, which causes severe pain and bleeding in the victim. Without medical assistance, a human being infected by a candiru catfish can lead to the death of the victim.

But the important thing is that the candidate himself cannot get out of this unusual environment; he will be stuck there for a long time. Here the catfish always dies, since it cannot get out of the human body, since humans are not a typical host of the candiry. Therefore, catfish often cannot be removed from human ureters without surgical intervention. This is what keeps the candiru catfish at bay among the natives living along the shores of the Amazon.

In 1941, the American Journal of Surgery published an article about candira. Its authors, Kenneth Vinton and Hugh Stickler, claimed that the Indians had come up with one way to get rid of fish, which “is less painful than amputating the penis.”

Zoologists have made different assumptions as to what exactly attracts the candira to the human genitals. The most plausible assumption seems to be that the candiru are extremely sensitive to the smell of urine: it happened that the candiru attacked a person a few moments after he urinated in the water. It is believed that candiru are able to find the source of smell in water.

But the candiru does not always penetrate the victim. It happens that, having overtaken prey, the candiru bites through the skin of a person or the gill tissue of a fish with long teeth that grow in their upper jaw and begins to suck blood from the victim, causing the body of the candiru itself to swell and swell. Candiru hunt not only fish and mammals, but also reptiles.

In most cases, operations take place without serious consequences, but if the operation is not carried out on time, the person may even die. The local population traditionally uses traditional methods of treatment, using the juices of two types of plants (in particular, genipa juice or burnt genipa leaves), which are injected directly into the place of attachment of the fish, which dies and then decomposes.

Common Vandellia, or Whiskered Vandellia (lat. Vandellia cirrhosa, aka candiru)- a freshwater fish that is found in the rivers of the Amazon. The fish is no more than 15 cm in length, has an eel-like shape and is almost transparent. Often there are specimens no larger than a match. However... this cute creature is considered a dangerous fish among local residents.

Photo from the web

Photo from the web

Local residents are afraid of this fish because it can swim into the anus, vagina or - in the case of small specimens - into the penis of a naked person all the way to the bladder. It feeds on blood and surrounding tissues, which can cause severe pain. Infection in humans is extremely rare. The common vandellia finds its victims by the presence of ammonia in the water, released from the gills during the breathing process of the fish or, in the case of humans, from the urethra.

Photo from the web

There is another point of view - it is believed that the candiru is attracted by the movement of the stream in the water rather than by its smell. In fish, this is the flow of water from the gill slits, but in humans, you know what.

Photo from the web

Photo from the web

Photo from the web

Once upon a time, the natives who lived on the banks of the Amazon risked entering the river only in durable “pants” made of... coconut shells! Nowadays, local residents swim in places where candiru can be found, only in tight-fitting swimming trunks.

Photo from the web

Be careful, friends! Vandellia doesn't sleep!

Based on the article“Common vandellia or candiru” and Wikipedia.
Original taken from zoosovet