| Payara | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Characiformes |
| Family: | Cynodontidae |
| Genus: | Hydrolycus |
| Species: | H. scomberoides |
| Binomial name | |
| Hydrolycus scomberoides (G. Cuvier, 1819) |
|
The Payara, Hydrolycus scomberoides, also known as "Dog Tooth Characin", "Vampire Fish", "Cachorra" (Venezuela) or "Chambira" (Peru) is a little-known species of gamefish that lives in the Orinoco River in Venezuela and in the Amazon basin. The payara's most noticeable features are the two long fangs protruding from its lower jaw. These fangs can be 4 to 6 inches long. This fish grows about a foot long in captivity.
Payaras eat most smaller fish, but the bulk of their diet consists of piranhas, which they impale with their sharp teeth. Payaras also share the same habitat with butterfly peacock bass (Cichla ocellaris). In the Amazon River basin Payara is restricted to tributaries above the mouth of the Rio Tapajós.