How scary is the Amazon River?Why don t even the locals dare to swim in it?

Mondo Tourism Updated on 2024-01-28

The Amazon River is the second longest river in the world, and the Amazon rainforest is known as the lungs of the earth. The natural scenery here is world-renowned, attracting tourists from all over the world. But in the eyes of the locals,Beneath the beauty of the Amazon River lies a murderous motive, the danger of this river is prohibitive, and you don't even dare to swim in the river, what's going on?

The Amazon River is the most important waterway in all of South America and the worldEven the Yellow and Yangtze rivers in China are not comparable to the Amazon in terms of biodiversity。The 6,400-kilometre-long Amazon River basin covers a staggering area691.50,000 square kilometersIt is home to thousands of species of flora and fauna, including rare and rare species, and although scientists have been exploring the Amazon basin for many years, they also discover new species that have never been seen before.

The Amazon River is known as the lungs of the earth because it is the world's largest carbon sinkHundreds of millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide from nature can be absorbed and stored in a single year alone。Coupled with the huge oxygen production capacity of the Amazon jungle, humans and other animals can survive on the planet for a long time. It is precisely because of the great role of the Amazon River on the ecology of the earth that many biological and environmental scientists have called for the protection of the Amazon River and the jungle from human exploitation and destruction.

In addition to scientists, the beauty of the Amazon River also attracts quite a few tourists, after all, the entire Amazon River basin is the largest rainforest in the worldThe natural beauty here still retains the original state of the earth hundreds of millions of years agoThis is a rare sight for those who have lived in the modern urban environment for a long time, but due to the danger of the natural environment itself, tourism in the Amazon is quite hardcore, not only costly, but also has a lot of safety risks.

The biodiversity of the Amazon is breathtaking, and most of the flora and fauna pose a threat to human survival, and the Amazon has always been a place of danger in the eyes of locals. During the rainy season, the water level of the river reaches an unimaginable heightEventually, floods swept away human settlements downstreamAlmost every year, the rainy season takes the lives of many people.

Of course, in addition to natural disasters, there are more direct threats to the flora and fauna of the Amazon basin, where there are more than 5,600 species of fish, more than 370 species of reptiles, and countless other insects and birds. Interestingly, the Amazons, although they live in rivers, never swim in riversBecause the quiet waters of the river are the most terrifying killers in the Amazon

There is a peculiar-looking fish in the Amazon River, which is very similar in appearance to the American B-2 stealth bomber, but with a long tail, which is the stingrayThe largest venomous fish known to man。The stingray's stinger is not in its mouth but on its tail, which is tens of centimeters long and has a stinger on it, which it uses to attack once it feels threatened.

The toxicity of stingrays is not highly toxic, but it is causedBacterial infectionsBut it is extremely deadly, and if you are stabbed by a stinger, the probability of death is very high, so even the locals are afraid of this fish, and it can be said that the stingray is also a reason why the locals are reluctant to go into the waterPreviously, a famous discovery show host was killed by a stingray attack

In addition to stingrays, there is another, more notorious freshwater fish in the Amazon:Paku piranha。There are some differences between the Paku piranha and our stereotypical piranha, such as the fact that its teeth are not as sharp as real piranhas, but look like human teeth. But that's just a façadeIn fact, the Paku piranha has better teeth than the average piranha, but any bite can cause extremely serious injuries.

Unlike most Amazonian creatures,Paku piranhas are one of the few fish that will actively attack humans, or that the Baku Piranha will launch an indiscriminate attack on any creature that can be eaten. When people cross rivers in society, they often attract the attention of Paku piranhas and attack. What's even creepier is that Paku piranhas are very sensitive to the smell of male ***, which causes them to attack the male crotch first.

In the Amazon, there was an incident in which two men were unfortunately attacked by Paku piranhas, and both of them died because of their injuries. But what is less known is that the Paku piranha though is already fierce enoughBut it's not the number one killer in the minds of the locals。What really makes the locals shudder is a very special little fish: the parasitic catfish.

Parasitic catfish do not exceed 1 cm in length, and their bodies are also translucent, so it is easy to confuse them with whitebait without solid knowledge of fish identification. As the smallest vertebrate in the world, the parasitic catfish has chosen a way to survive with inverted hairHe will bite through the host's epidermis and enter the host directly from the wound

At this time, the blood and organs of the host will become food for the parasitic catfish, which will be eaten up little by little. What's even more terrifying is that the parasitic catfish is a social animalIn other words, dozens of parasitic catfish often burrow into the host's body together。What's even more terrifying is that parasitic catfish are very sensitive to the smell of urine, so they often enter through the human urethraBladderand will nibble on the host to death. Amazon, for example, has seen several tragic incidents of parasitic catfish causing death.

Compared to being eaten into bare bones by Paku piranhas,The pain of being parasitic to death by a parasitic catfish is even worseIn addition, the infrastructure construction in the Amazon region is extremely backward, and once it is recruited, it is often too late to send it to the hospital for **, so once it is parasitic catfish, it is likely to die on the spot, becoming a luxurious feast for this small fish. There are Paku piranhas in front and parasitic catfish in the back, and it is understandable that the locals do not dare to swim.

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