Piaractus brachypomus
| Piaractus brachypomus | |
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| adult above, juvenile below | |
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Not evaluated (IUCN 3.1)
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Characiformes |
| Family: | Serrasalmidae |
| Genus: | Piaractus |
| Species: | P. brachypomus |
| Binomial name | |
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Piaractus brachypomus (G. Cuvier, 1818) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Colossoma bidens |
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Colossoma bidens
Colossoma brachypomum
Piaractus brachypomus (synonym Colossoma bidens) is a large species of pacu, a close relative of piranhas and silver dollars, in the serrasalmid family. It is native to the Amazon and Orinoco basins in tropical South America, but it is widely farmed and has been introduced to other regions. As with a number of other closely related species, P. brachypomus is often referred to as the red-bellied pacu in reference to the appearance of the juveniles. This has resulted in a great deal of confusion about the nature and needs of all the species involved, with the reputation and requirements of one frequently being wrongly attributed to the others. An unambiguous name for P. brachypomus is pirapitinga.
P. brachypomus can reach up to 88 cm (2.9 ft) in length and 25 kg (55 lb) in weight.
Juveniles have a distinct red chest and belly, and are easily confused with the carnivorous red-bellied piranha (Pygocentrus nattereri), but the two can be separated by their teeth, which are molar-like in Piaractus. This similarity is believed to be mimicry by P. brachypomus in an attempt of avoiding predation by other species. Adults lack the strongly colored chest and belly, and resemble the tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), but can be separated by several meristic and morphological features (adipose fin, teeth and operculum). The other member of its genus, P. mesopotamicus, can be distinguished by its smaller scale-size and the higher number of lateral scales (more than 110).
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