Catfish is the largest freshwater predator. It lives in pools and littered river pits. At the age of one hundred years, it can reach a weight of 300 kg and a five-meter length. There are many tales and legends about catfish, in the contents of the stomach of which the remains of people are found. Whether these stories are plausible, and whether a catfish can eat a person, we will find out further.
Historical facts
Catfish is found in all major rivers in Russia, as well as in Latin America, Canada, the USA and Europe. According to scientists, catfish live up to a hundred years and grow up to five meters in length. He is able to attack any living creature that will meet on the surface of the water. But this predator, unlike the shark, does not tear off a piece from the prey, the structure of its teeth resembles a brush, they are small, often located and bent inward. Grabbing the prey, he is not able to let it go, so he swallows it whole or drags it to the bottom. Can a catfish eat a human? Most likely not, but to sink yes. He will grab a careless bather by the leg and drag him to the bottom. Such cases are very rare, but according to scientists, there aredocumentary evidence.
Description of catfish
Inhabitant of pools and littered pits, catfish is the largest freshwater predator. It has a powerful long body, which does not contain scales and is covered with mucus, which facilitates sliding along the bottom of the reservoir. The color is brown and varies depending on the habitat, the belly is white. The head is broad and flat with a large mouth and many small teeth. There are two large whiskers on the upper jaw and four small ones on the lower jaw. They serve as organs of touch and help find food. The eyes are small and blind.
The long and powerful tail bears little resemblance to a fish. The dorsal fin is small, the anal fin is wide, long and connected to the caudal fin. Catfish prefers a benthic lifestyle. It is unpretentious in nutrition: it eats plant foods, small fish, shells, larvae, crayfish, frogs, mice, birds and any other living creatures that have fallen into the water. Does not shun carrion. The information about whether catfish can eat a person is questionable. But a dog or a calf that accidentally finds itself in the water will be dragged by a large and hungry catfish under water and eaten.
Catfish
Many different legends are associated with this fish, it is often called the killer fish. The predator goes hunting in the evenings, getting out of its daytime shelter, located at the bottom of the reservoir. A big fish is able to break the fishing nets and eat the prey, hit the water with its powerful tail and turn the boat with the fishermen over. Eyewitness accounts testify to the attack of catfish on birds, animals and humans, but most of all itloves carrion. Can a catfish eat a person in the water? It is classified as an omnivorous fish, but it has not been seen hunting people, although it feeds on corpses.
It is noted that during the hunt for animals, catfish captures them with their mouths and drags them to the bottom, hides them under snags and waits until the tissues decompose and the prey becomes soft. At night, the fish come to the shore in search of food. The predator does not like muddy water and leaves its shelter during the rainy season. He finds food using the organs of smell. Therefore, fishermen use food waste and animal giblets as top dressing. Fishing is done on bottom gear.
Reproduction of catfish
Maturity of predators occurs after reaching the age of five. Spawning starts from the end of May until mid-June, when the water becomes warm enough. The fish rises from the bottom and looks for suitable places for spawning. These can be shady backwaters, slow channels, secluded places in shallow water in reeds. In the process of courtship, catfish chase each other for a long time, causing a strong splash and noise. The female selects the largest male as her partner.
Together they go to a pre-selected place, where she digs a hole with the help of her pectoral fins for laying eggs, which may turn out to be more than half a million. They begin to hatch in about a week, and after two they are already settled in the reservoir. After that, a pair of catfish breaks up and each swims away to its own habitat.
Forbidden Fish
As alreadymentioned above, many different legends and beliefs are passed from mouth to mouth about catfish. Among the ancient Slavs, he was considered the "damn horse" of the waterman, who used the mustache of a fish instead of reins. In connection with this circumstance, people had a fear of a huge monster. They seriously thought about whether the catfish could eat a person, because he supplies drowned people to the water man. At that time in Russia it was strictly forbidden to engage in catching catfish. But there were real reasons to fear the predator.
Large fish, unlike small and medium-sized individuals, are not easy to feed themselves. Therefore, the freshwater giant was nicknamed the cleaner of river reservoirs, which feeds on carrion found at great depths. And sometimes he grabs small animals and birds in the water.
Interesting catfish facts
There are no toothy alligators and giant snakes in the rivers of Russia. For swimmers, they seem to be completely safe water bodies. Few of them think about whether a catfish can drag a person under water and eat it. This fish lives in all major rivers of the country and some of its specimens, reaching enormous sizes, can drown a person by grabbing his leg, and then eat him. It is noted that the catfish:
- Very smart and cunning predator. He lies in a shelter with his mouth open and moves his whiskers, imitating worms. When prey approaches, it draws in water, sucking in everything edible with it.
- Voracious fish. He does not shun anything edible that gets into the water: a waterfowl; a nest with chicks hanging over the water; dog orcalf that entered the river.
- Some specimens reach up to 5 meters and weigh 400 kg.
- The color of the fish varies from yellow to black tones depending on the habitat.
- A dangerous predator can drown a person.
Expert Opinion
Can a catfish eat a human? According to the head of the laboratory of the Kazakh Institute of Fisheries, the rumor about cannibal catfish is a fiction. The first thing he notes is that there are no such a number of huge fish in reservoirs. Second, predators do not pose a danger like sharks. He believes that there are catfish no more than 2.5 meters in length. But to say that they are cannibals is wrong. Catfish are shy fish and never go where people swim. In addition, large individuals are found exclusively at great depths.
It is quite possible that human remains were found in the stomachs of huge catfish, because they feed on carrion. And the decomposed corpse of a drowned man serves as food for a predator. There is not a single confirmed fact that catfish once ate people does not exist. But catfish really catch and feed on large fish, birds and small animals.
Safety measures
Can a catfish eat a human? In fact, the attacks of these predators on people have not been identified, but it will not be superfluous to beware. What attracts catfish:
- Noise - Forces the giant to get out of hiding and hunt down the victim.
- Smells - a special susceptibility to various aromas (spices, perfumes, deodorants, colognes) excites the predator and servesbait.
When swimming, it is better to stay away from the whirlpools, where the catfish shelter is often outdated and not to swim to great depths.
Conclusion
Can a catfish eat a person in the water? Theoretically, a catfish is able to drown a person, but most likely it is not able to swallow it. If we assume that the length of the catfish is 2.5 meters, then its stomach is much smaller and approximately one third of the body length. It is unlikely that an adult will fit. Given the descriptions of the destruction of lambs by catfish, it is possible to assume that giant catfish could attack and swallow small children. But, most likely, the presence of human remains in the stomach of catfish is not associated with actual attacks, but with eating dead bodies located at the bottom of the reservoir. Still, you should definitely not call catfish cannibals.
