While humans open ourselves to discover interesting exotic dishes and new flavors beyond our geographical limits, in the bottom of the sea are these eccentric animals that for reasons of survival or personal whim have used their abilities to jump to the earth's surface and become the fish that hunt non-marine animals. What do they eat and what are their hunting techniques? Let terrestrial creatures tremble! Find out below.
7 Fish that hunt non-marine animals
1. Jumping mud fish
These unique fish love to spend time out of the water, strange, right? Well, as its name suggests, the muddy jumping fish It is an amphibious fish, able to breathe both in muddy lands and on the coasts of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They do it through the gills - like any other fish - and also through the skin when they move on land with the momentum of their fins, which are very well adapted to walk, climb trees and jump quickly in the search for insects, worms, even small fish of the same species.
2. The snakehead fish
The snake-headed fish, with its terrifying appearance, is another of the fish that hunt non-marine animals. In Australia they have seen it feeding on waterfowl, rodents. And with their sharp teeth, they are also capable of killing snakes in one bite, really terrifying!
They are native to Asia, although somehow they ended up invading American rivers, such as the Polomac, where around 21,000 snake heads live. About their mysterious arrival in these waters it is suspected that they could have been thrown there, since they used to be imported to America as exotic pets and for food.
3. The European catfish
In fact, it is not common for the European catfish to be part of the list of fish that hunt non-marine creatures. However, exclusively on the Tarn river in Albi, France , this species was forced to leave the depths of the river to find another source of food. They mainly eat pigeons on the shore of the coast , which are dragged into the water with great energy by these marine creatures.
Researchers theorize that since the smallest catfish are the only ones that have shown this type of behavior, it may be because the larger fish end up consuming most of the prey, so the younger ones were forced to find other sources of supplies outside of their natural habitat.
4. Rainbow trout
Do not let this colorful freshwater fish deceive you, because with their presumed docility they are capable of hunting almost anything. From insects to small terrestrial mammals that are in the vicinity of their dwelling, this is another of the fish that hunt terrestrial creatures.
In 2013, a researcher was surprised to find 20 shrews in the stomach of this species. In another study it was found that additionally feeds on field mice or any other animal that wanders too close to the river, therefore, their diet is quite diverse.
Nobody knows for sure how they do to hunt so many variety of non-marine animals. Perhaps it is their ability to jump so high in the air which makes them one of the most agile fish in the fight for survival.
5. African tiger fish
The cunning fish African tiger has perfected its hunting techniques over time to catch a difficult prey, like the swift barn swallow. One of his methods is to chase the prey from the surface of the water before jumping to catch it with surprising speed. Nothing easy, nothing easy, but it is with its smooth body, which in the case of males can reach 180 centimeters in length, and with its teeth as sharp as fangs that this feat is possible. Better check it for yourself, check out this predator in action, in the top video.
6. Arowana silver
In the waters of South America lives this fierce hunter that grows up to a meter long and is able to jump out of the water to feed on insects, snakes and birds that perch on the branches of trees. He does it with a speed that has reputed them as aquatic monkeys. Do you want to see how they do it? Play the next video.
7. Tiger shark
In the Gulf of Mexico, a particular phenomenon occurs with tiger sharks that, aware of how confusing migration can be for some birds, which travel long distances, end up losing track and fall exhausted in the water, have taken advantage of this situation to fill their stomachs with a few feathers.
Nobody expected it until in 2009, Marcys Drymon, a researcher of the Dauphin Island Sea lab He caught a tiger shark off the coast of Alabama and it coughed feathers. It was quite obvious that they did not belong to the feathers of an aquatic bird, so this whole situation aroused enormous curiosity in Drymon, who conducted another study based on the dissection of the stomachs of about 50 sharks Tiger .
From this it was known that the diet of this type of shark was not limited to marine animals, as previously believed. Since inside they found remains of land birds such as woodpeckers, skylarks and tanagers, an interesting find.
So it's up to the terrestrial animals to save their skin from the aggressive predators on the mainland and the calculators fish that hunt non-marine animals. Were you aware of what these aquatic species are capable of doing outside of their habitat?