Piranhas are not all what they are cracked up to be. I have been collecting piranhas from various locations throughout the South American region for about four years now. I have owned the common Red Belly piranha and I have owned the "evil" Black Piranha. I must say that I was expecting them to be "killers" when I bought them, but much to my dismay, they were scared easily and would flee from my presence. They have such a bad reputation for killing or detroying things so quickly that they have been cast out as violent and vicious pests among the aquarium hobby.

More often than not, they are just like any other fish. You feed them every day and over a period of time, they will get to know you and become comfortable in your presence and that's when their personailites are really fun to see.

The Pygocentrus Family is the most well knows group of Piranhas. They consist of the Nattereri, Caribe, Piraya, and Ternetzi. These 4 species can be kept together as long as they have plenty of space and lots to eat. However, the Serrasalmus Family is a single specimen type of fish in which even if introduced to the same tank with one of it's own kind, will eventually wind up with only one left standing. Many people have tried to "co-habitate" different species of piranha in order to prove that they could, but it has been in my experience that no matter how long you think they are "getting along" eventually, they will not tolerate one another and a death will occur.

Most people would not dream of setting up a 55, 75 or even a 125 gallon aquarium just to have 1 lonely fish in it, but there are hobbiests out there (myself included) that have whole tanks set up for just one Serrasalmus species piranha. I imagine that there are other fish in this world that also need their own tank to themselves that hobbiests have dedicated the whole aquarium to, just to keep that species happy. I am just a piranha freak with hopes of one day having at least one of every species of piranha ever classified as my pets.

I hope that some of you who may be interesting in keeping piranhas will research them to the best of your ability before deciding to take one home. They can be very fun to have and you don't just have to feed them feeders! They actually prefer Silversides, Shrimp, Tilapia, and Krill. At least those items don't carry diseases.

I just hope that I can help you choose the right piranha for you if a piranha is what you wish to have for your next pet. I am working with Haley at Pet World in Omaha, Nebraska. If there is a piranha or any other fish on my website that you would wish to purchase, please contact Haley here on the forum via PM to "KissKissGirl" or call Pet World in Omaha, NE and she will special order it for you.

Thanks again Haley for allowing me the opportunity to educate the people of this wonderful forum and Thanks also to MelonHead for allowing me to set up my own special "Piranha" forum.