Those Bloody Piranhas Can Talk To Each Other

Not only these nasty little fish are vicious, but scientists have discovered that those bloody piranhas can talk to each other. They use three sounds, each of them meaning a new different thing.

One of the sounds is a bark used to intimidate rivals. The other two were drumming songs produced when they attack each other. The discovery is part of a larger study to learn the behaviour of fish according to the sounds they produce, said the scientist leading the research, Eric Parmentier:

Eventually, if we understand the behaviour that’s associated with the sounds, we might be able to listen to the sea and explain to fishermen: ‘Now’s not the best time to start fishing’.

They produce these sounds vibrating their swim bladders 150 times every second. [The Journal of Experimental Biology via BBC]