8-year-old boy catches terrifying predatory fish while fishing

Eight-year-old Seymus encountered an unexpected and unusual incident while fishing with his father in the US state of Pennsylvania. He had expected to catch bass as usual, but instead a sharp-toothed, red-bellied piranha took the bait.

The boy’s father, Michael Koffi, wrote about the incident on Facebook, saying, “I’m no longer surprised by what Seymus catches. Today he caught a 2-pound red-bellied piranha from Ridley-Park Lake!”

The father and son, who live in Delaware County, were simply fishing when Seymus felt a fish on the line. Michael initially thought it was an ordinary bass and advised him to reel it in slowly so the fish would not get away.

However, when Seymus pulled the fish out of the water, his father was astonished. At first, Michael thought it might be a larger bluegill or another similar species.

“I thought it was a bluegill, then I said, ‘What is this?’” he told 6ABC.

Seymus immediately recognized the fish.

“It’s a piranha!” he said.

The boy’s ability to quickly identify such an unusual fish was helped by educational nature and fishing videos he watches online. According to Michael, Seymus regularly watches videos about fish from different parts of the world.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission also confirmed that the fish caught was indeed a piranha. Piranhas are primarily found in the waters of South America.

Experts say that although the appearance of such an exotic fish in a local lake may seem strange, similar incidents have previously been recorded in the state.

Mike Parker, communications director for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, said reports of unusual creatures appearing in local waters are received every summer. They include alligators, caimans, exotic snakes, reptiles and various types of fish.

Parker explained that although keeping exotic animals at home is permitted in the state, releasing them into public bodies of water is illegal.

According to the expert, this piranha may also have been kept by someone as a pet before being dumped in the lake when its owner wanted to get rid of it.

Other possible reasons exotic creatures end up in local ecosystems include accidentally escaping from the live seafood trade or animals being released into the wild during certain cultural ceremonies.