In the small lake Martin Wells in the British county of Doncaster, for some time now, fishermen began to complain about the loss of fish.
Then people noticed that there were much fewer ducks on the lake.
And recently, local residents found two strange fish on the shore of the lake. As soon as they looked at them, they thought that they looked like piranhas, famous for their gluttony.
Piranhas live in the Amazon River in South America and in a matter of minutes a large school of these fish can gnaw a pig carcass to the bone.
How piranhas got into Martin Wells Lake remains unknown, it is possible that someone released the fish from a home aquarium. However, if we associate the unusual loss of fish in the lake and the disappearance of ducks with the appearance of piranhas in these waters, the picture turns out to be eerie: exotic fish not only settled in the British lake, but influenced its ecosystem.
Lake Martin Wells is a popular leisure destination not only for fishermen, but also for boaters, including children, and now parents are afraid if children get into the water, piranhas may attack them.
One of the fish was found by 32-year-old Tony Hooper while walking along the river with her family.
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According to Tony, they often came here to feed the ducks, but last Sunday they found only one duck with two ducklings. All the rest are not clear where they went.
The second piranha was noticed in shallow water by 37-year-old mother of three children Lisa Holmes and her friend David.
Piranhas are very attractive for home aquariums, according to journalist and biologist Helen Thompson, but some species grow very quickly and get too large. And then one of the aquarists could simply throw the fish into the local lake.
With their sharp teeth, piranhas can sometimes even kill humans, although such attacks are rare. Basically, their victims are children who wallow in the water like a wounded animal and attract a flock of piranhas.
Basically, they just bite on the hands or feet, causing minor injuries, but at times the wounds can be fatal.
In 2011, piranhas ate to death an 18-year-old Bolivian who got drunk and got into the water. And in 2015, a 5-year-old girl from Brazil was killed by a pack of piranhas. The child fell into the water when the boat she was sailing on capsized.
It is not yet known how many piranhas live in Lake Martin Wells and whether the decrease in the number of fish and the disappearance of ducks are associated with their appearance.
