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What Would Actually Happen If You Fell Into Piranha-Infested Waters?

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clock-iconPUBLISHEDDecember 1, 2023
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What Would Actually Happen If You Fell Into Piranha-Infested Waters?

Swimming with piranhas may be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Maddy Chapman headshot

Maddy Chapman

Maddy Chapman headshot

Maddy Chapman

Editor & Writer

Maddy has a degree in biochemistry from the University of York and specializes in reporting on health, medicine, and genetics.

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BookRead IFLScience Editorial Policy

Editor & Writer

Maddy has a degree in biochemistry from the University of York and specializes in reporting on health, medicine, and genetics.View full profile

Maddy has a degree in biochemistry from the University of York and specializes in reporting on health, medicine, and genetics.

View full profile
A swarm of piranhas underwater

This advice better not come back to me.

Image credit: Andrei Armiagov/Shutterstock.com 

If you fall into piranha-infested waters, how long do you have before they devour you before your very eyes? Minutes? Seconds? If you watched Netflix's wildly popular Wednesday last year, you will have seen the show opens with the titular character enacting revenge on her brother's bullies by unleashing a bag of the little biters into the school swimming pool to merry hell. 

The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

But what would actually happen if you found yourself in close quarters with a pack of piranhas? And what does Teddy Roosevelt have to do with it all? 

Video credit: TED-Ed

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ORIGINALLY PUBLISHEDDecember 1, 2023

Written by Maddy Chapman

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