Hidden Talents Animals Use To Hunt That Show Us Mother Nature Is Cray

The Candiru Will Swim Up Your Butt

Photo credit: @acrefresh/Instagram

If you needed another reason not to trust going in the water, here it is. The candiru is a small fish native to the Amazon rainforest. It might look harmless but its favorite pasttime is burrowing itself into the anus or urethra of an unknowing human. The candiru then attaches itself inside you with sharp claws and hangs out, eating you from the inside.

The fish was first documented in the 19th century, and humans knew it was to be feared. Early accounts called the fish “very small, but uniquely occupied in doing evil.” There have been some surgeries for removing them, but they aren’t well understood.