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Scary Animals Found in the Amazon Rainforest · Be Amazed

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: From fearsome fish with giant six-inch fangs to evil insects that wipe out 12,000 people every year, and even loot a crissly large leeches with an insatiable appetite for blood, the Amazon is filled with some critters that seem purpose-built to send shivers down your spine.
• 0:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: So get your trekking poles and hiking boots ready as we delve into the scariest animals found in the Amazon.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Now when it comes to scary animals in the Amazon, we're better to start than the green anaconda.
• 0:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Stretching to a stupendous 30 feet with a chunky 12-inch width, the largest of these snakes come in at 550 pounds, more than 3 times the weight of a typical human.
• 0:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: But what really makes green-anaconda so downright disturbing is their immense power.
• 1:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: As their non-venomists, they rely on their crushing constriction abilities, coiling their muscular bodies around captured prey and squeezing until the poor critter is fixiates.
• 1:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you certainly wouldn't want to find yourself within striking distance of one of these giants.
• 1:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you ever happened across paths with these monsters, you'd think you could at least escape by diving straight into the Amazon River.
• 1:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: But no, these rascally reptiles even have that figured, you see green anacondas are semi-aquatic.
• 1:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: And, credibly, they can hold their breath under water for more than 10 minutes, meaning swimming away from these monsters, ain't looking likely.
• 1:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even after green andacondas run out of breath, they can remain underwater as their eyes and nostrils are also located on top of their heads, allowing them to see and breathe while submerged.
• 1:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Man, there really is no escaping those terrors, but scary is all that sounds.
• 1:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: What if I told you the Amazon might be home to an even more frightful serpent?
• 2:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Around 60 million years ago, this prehistoric snake, which stretched around 50 feet long and weighed as much as a whopping 2,500 pounds, ruled the Amazon.
• 2:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm talking about the Taitano Boa.
• 2:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thankfully, this scary snake has supposedly been extinct for around 58 million years.
• 2:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Saying that there have been numerous claim sightings of the Taitano Boa in recent times.
• 2:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Arguably the most famous account came from Percy Fossett, a British explorer, who in the early 20th century wrote about what he witnessed in the Amazon.
• 2:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: We stepped ashore and approached the reptile with caution, as far as it was possible to measure a length of 45 feet layout of the water, and 17 feet in it, making a total length of 62 feet.
• 2:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Fortunately, most people passed faucets tail office, nothing more than a good story.
• 2:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even still, the Amazon covers over 2.5 million square miles of land, making it well over 10 times the size of France.
• 3:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: What's to say some super snake isn't hiding in its depths?
• 3:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: If all that wasn't frightful enough, there are also stories of yet another super-sized serpent in the Amazon.
• 3:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: According to Indigenous tribes across the region, there have been numerous sightings of the dreaded Yakumama.
• 3:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: This snake believed to be the mother of all aquatic animals is said to measure close to 200 feet long, making it six times lengthier than the largest green anaconda.
• 3:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even more chillingly according to whispers within the rainforest, the Yakumama can supposedly suck up any living being that comes within 100 paces of it, like some sort of vicious vacuum.
• 3:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: On top of that, it's even said this mega monster can create whirlpools by thrashing its colossal body in the water.
• 3:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: In the early 1900s, a boat of two men supposedly spotted the Yakumama in the Amazon river and dropped an explosive into the water, hoping to wipe out the creature.
• 4:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: After the explosive detonated, the soaring snake rose from the water before swimming off, leaving the men with chills down their spine.
• 4:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: What are you reckon?
• 4:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Is there a train-sized sinister serpent living in the Amazon?
• 4:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Or is this just some heart racing rumor?
• 4:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Let me know what you think in the comments if the platform allows it.
• 4:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: But super-sized snakes aren't the only thing that you'll need to keep your eyes peeled on in the Amazon.
• 4:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Any animal with vampire in its name ain't going to be too friendly, and that's certainly the case with the vampire wasp.
• 4:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: First discovered by researchers in 2023, these intimidating insects grow to 0.7 inches, making them around twice the size of your typical wasp.
• 4:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, what makes these guys so fearsome isn't their size, but what they do to their prey.
• 5:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: When a female vampire wastes finds a suitable target, typically a caterpillar beetle or spider, she'll deposit an egg inside the host by piercing it with her ovipositor, a needle-like egg-lang organ.
• 5:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's right, the vampire wastes essentially injects insects with its own offspring.
• 5:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Ah, someone get me a puked bucket.
• 5:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: As their name suggests, vampire wasps also have a taste for the red stuff.
• 5:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: Turns out after stabbing their host with their Obey Positor, the female will slurped down the hemalemp, a blood-like fluid found in insects, which seeps from the wound, as if they haven't suffered enough.
• 5:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yet the nightmare still isn't over there.
• 5:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: After a few days the eggs that have been planted inside the stricken host will hatch into larvae before they eat the insects corpse from the inside out.
• 5:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Man, nature is brutal.
• 5:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: All of a sudden Hornets look about as scary as Barry B. Benson.
• 6:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: Speaking of vampires, that brings us on to our next brutal beast.
• 6:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Reaching close to four foot, this species of fish is known as a pihara, or vampire fish.
• 6:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: No prizes for guessing how they got that name.
• 6:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: These fiery fish come armed with two terrifying six-inch fangs on their lower jaw.
• 6:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: And those nassures aren't just for show either.
• 6:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: They use their super sharp teeth to skewer whatever fish dared to venture too close.
• 6:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even piranhas.
• 6:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: While there have been no recorded attacks on humans, would you really want to swim in waters containing these frightful fish?
• 6:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I think not.
• 6:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: But pyra aren't the only wicked water-based creature found in the Amazon River.
• 6:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Dolphins are usually known for their playfulness and intelligence, but Amazon River Dolphins have a much darker side.
• 6:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: For starters, much like pyra is, they love nothing more than tearing chunks out of piranhas.
• 6:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even more horrifyingly, though, these marine mammals have developed a taste for us humans, too.
• 7:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: And with 28 pairs of menacing mullers filling their snouts, that's not good news.
• 7:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Back in 2023, one unfortunate 28-year-old woman found that out for herself.
• 7:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: While paddling in the river, she spotted one of these pink dolphins gliding under the water's surface.
• 7:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: Get strangely, it was heading straight for her.
• 7:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Probably not thinking much of it, the woman remained in the water.
• 7:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: That had quickly become a massive mistake.
• 7:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: In a moment, the devilish dolphin sunk its teeth into her leg, not letting go for 20 seconds.
• 7:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thankfully, the woman survived, though she did suffer deep tissue damage to her foot.
• 7:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Ouch.
• 7:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Man.
• 7:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Amazon is so cursed that even the dolphins here are hellish.
• 7:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Up next, the kissing bug, which has gained a reputation for getting a little personal, shall we say, but don't get it twisted, these insects found throughout Central and South America certainly aren't lovable romantics.
• 8:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: These nocturnal bugs buzz about at night searching for any sleeping animals to feed on.
• 8:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Once they've locked in on a target, they'll insert their needle-like proboscis into their host, before slurping on the poor soul's blood.
• 8:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, when it comes to us humans, kissing bugs decide to ramp up the horror even more.
• 8:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: You see, they get their name thanks to their tendency of biting humans around the lips.
• 8:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Though the bites painless, it comes with some very nasty side effects.
• 8:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's because after slurping up your blood, these eerie insects will, and there's no simple way to say this, deficate on you.
• 8:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: And they say romance is dead.
• 8:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Not only is that insanely disgusting, it's also deadly.
• 8:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: Often these bugs carry a parasite known as trippinosoma cruzi.
• 8:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: If anyone bitten by an infected bug happens to smear its feces into the open wound, it can cause chugas disease.
• 9:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: Now that's really not something you want.
• 9:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: Initially, anyone infected will experience mild symptoms, like fevers, muscle pain, or headaches.
• 9:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, as much as 30% of infected people can develop long lasting serious health complications from this illness, this ranges from stomach pains and constipation to heart failure and cardiac arrest.
• 9:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sheesh.
• 9:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: tragically, this disease is so deadly, it wipes out some 12,000 people every year.
• 9:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: And all that from an unsuspecting insect getting a little too familiar.
• 9:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: Man, talk about a kiss of death.
• 9:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Though our next Amazonian insect won't be giving you a perilous pick on the lips, that doesn't make it any less terrifying.
• 9:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: As its name suggests, the Spiny Devil Katie did ain't a critter to be messed with.
• 9:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Measuring around three inches, they're not horrifyingly huge, but what they lack in size they make up for and sheer nightmare fuel.
• 9:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: At first glance, these critters don't look much different from any old cricket.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, up close, their head and six legs are covered in spiny, thorn-like rejections.
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: Ouch.
• 10:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Talk about a spiky customer.
• 10:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: As you've probably guessed, those spines aren't some sort of decorative armor.
• 10:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Spiny Devil Cadydids thrust their lethal legs either to fight off predators or in snare any poor prey.
• 10:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Though they don't have any teeth, they're able to easily devour dinner thanks to their large mandibles.
• 10:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: In fact, it's said a Spiny Devil Cadydid's bite is so fierce, it can even slice through human skin.
• 10:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: Okay, before you start hyperventilating, you'll be glad to hear these conniving critters prefer to munch down on seeds, fruit, and any helpless insect they can get their menacing mandibles around rather than us humans.
• 10:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even still, knowing a super-spiky menacing mouth cricket is lurking amongst the rainforests foliage is enough for me to give the Amazon a miss.
• 11:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: but not every terror in the Amazon is one you'll find in a textbook.
• 11:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Some of its most spine-chilling residents blur the line between flesh and folklore, and one of them may have revealed itself to a group of very pickers deep in the Brazilian jungle.
• 11:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Back in 2014, a group of very pickers were delving deep into the Brazilian Amazon, when out of nowhere they heard a strange sound.
• 11:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: It was a spine-chilling cry from some beast in the rainforest.
• 11:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: One of the harvesters began imitating the cry when they suddenly realized that the noise was getting closer and closer.
• 11:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then there was a loud crash before a dark tall creature with one reddish flaming eye was staring down at them.
• 11:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: in a moment they ran for their canoe and sailed back to their villages quick as they could.
• 11:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thankfully, all of the berry pickers escaped unscathed, still they couldn't sleep for days afterwards and refused to return to that section of the rainforest ever again.
• 11:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: So, what beast had they encountered?
• 12:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, for some theorist out there, it may have been the mapping query.
• 12:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: A mythical monstrous creature that's said to live amongst the dense foliage of the Amazon.
• 12:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: According to Brazilian folklore, the mapping query can stand on two or four legs as at least seven feet tall standing upright, as Shaggy hair and possesses a Cyclops eye.
• 12:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Okay, I know what you're thinking.
• 12:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: This sounds like some prime Hollywood fiction.
• 12:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, according to Rainforest Biologist David Oren, there have been more than 80 reported mapping-garious sightings over the years.
• 12:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: So is there really some crazed Cyclops creature roaming the rainforest?
• 12:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, probably not.
• 12:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Soologists who've heard stories of the mapping-garious, believe the most likely explanation is a case of mistake and identity.
• 12:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: For many, the most likely culprit is, the spectacle bare.
• 12:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Though these mammals aren't known for habituating the Amazon rainforest, they do occasionally venture down from the mountains in the western Amazon during the winter.
• 13:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're usually on all fours but can stretch close to seven feet when standing upright.
• 13:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: They also possess these strange markings on their head which went in the dense shadowy rainforest could certainly be mistaken for a cyclopside by any terrified onlookers.
• 13:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: For now, the true identity of the Mapping Gwerry remains a mystery.
• 13:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: What do you think?
• 13:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Does a creepy cyclops really roam the rainforest or is some other creature responsible for these sinister sightings?
• 13:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: So far we've delved into the terrors that prowled the land and watery depths of the Amazon, but don't be fooled into thinking the skies above are safe.
• 13:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Whether it's the striking crown of feathers that piercing look or its bulky build, the heartbeat eagle certainly isn't a bird you want to mess with.
• 13:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, imagine having that thing death staring down at you while you're trekking through the rainforest.
• 13:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: As you've probably already worked out, these fearsome flyers are menacingly massive too.
• 13:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: Harpy Eagles have a wingspan of seven and a half feet in way in at a hefty 20 pounds.
• 14:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: That makes them the sixth largest bird of prey in the world and the biggest found throughout the Amazon.
• 14:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yet, awe-inspiring as their size is, it's their wicked weapons of choice that truly sends shivers down the spine, and its talons are the stuff of nightmares.
• 14:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Measuring some five inches in length, these talons are the largest of any eagle on the planet.
• 14:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: For some perspective, they're so large they're around the size of a grizzly bear claw.
• 14:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Armed with such crazy catchers, harpy eagles can take down a whole host of prey.
• 14:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: Two foot-long haller monkeys?
• 14:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: No problem.
• 14:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Eight pound slots?
• 14:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: Easy pickings.
• 14:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even small deer aren't safe from the Harpy Eagles' vice-like grasp.
• 14:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Harpy Eagle?
• 14:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: More like Harpy Eagle.
• 14:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right, I'll see myself out.
• 14:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: But Harpy Eagles aren't the only shadow in the Amazon sky that'll strike fear into your heart.
• 14:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: With a wingspan stretching over three feet long, the spectral bat is the
• 15:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: A bat with a three-foot wingspan.
• 15:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: For context, that's over double the wingspan of the Horybat, the most prevalent species in the U.S. while seeing a great big bat glide over your head would be terrifying enough.
• 15:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: What makes spectral bats truly petrifying is their devilish dome.
• 15:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Whether it's their eerie ears, devilish snout, or most chillingly of all, their grizzly nashes, their grizzly fangs, spectral bats, certainly are a frightful sight.
• 15:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: Typically, bats nibble on fruits or insects, not these guys, though, thanks to their menacing moths, they have far more bloodthirsty ambitions.
• 15:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Stalking their prey from above, these bats zoom down before delivering a fatal bite to the top of their prey's head or neck.
• 15:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: They'll happily die on anything they can fit their mouth around from birds to rodents and even other species of bat.
• 15:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: Man, there really is no loyalty nowadays is there.
• 15:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: While you may be looking to the skies to dodge any, harpy eagles or spectral bats diving down, you'll also want to check the Amazon's Rainforest floor for our next sizable slimy customer.
• 16:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: Growing to a guard ganchu in 18 inches, the Amazon giant leech is around nine times the size of a typical leech.
• 16:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: You won't be surprised to know that their cat-sized proportions make them the largest freshwater leech in the world.
• 16:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: But their stoop and his size isn't the only thing that sets these guys apart from your typical leech.
• 16:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: While most leeches use rows of teeth to puncture the skin and draw blood, the Amazon giant leech takes things to a whole new, horrifying level.
• 16:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: They'll burrow their long-forboscus up to six inches into any poor host, allowing them to slurp blood until their bellies are full.
• 16:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: It sounds horribly painful, but most critters actually won't feel a thing.
• 16:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's because the leeches secrete a cocktail of chemicals that numb the area the perboscus pierces.
• 16:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: as well as that the leaches saliva contains a strong anti-coagulant that increases blood flow allowing them to slurp away.
• 17:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: Now based on the size of them, that's not something you want.
• 17:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: In fact, claims from the late 19th century state that if horse or cattle were subject to an infestation of several Amazon giant leaches, it could be fatal.
• 17:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yikes!
• 17:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: Fortunately, those accounts are likely to be more fiction than fact.
• 17:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: In truth, it's believed these guys consume around 0.5 fluid ounces per sitting, which, if you're wondering, certainly isn't enough to take down any decently sized animals.
• 17:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Okay, so, Amazon giant leeches aren't killers.
• 17:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Still, their size, slime, and the thought of them stabbing a six inch long creboscus into my flesh means they've got to go down as one of the Amazon's most sinister species.
• 17:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: As we've already heard, the Amazon River is chock full of nightmarish wildlife, however we're not done yet with the crazed critters that call this river home.
• 17:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: The sheep said fish abituates the western Atlantic, though it can occasionally enter the Amazon's tributaries that merge into the ocean.
• 18:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: At first, these fish look fairly ordinary.
• 18:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: That isn't until you catch a glimpse inside the menacing mouths of these swimmers.
• 18:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: Inside their moths are lines of creepy, human-like mollers.
• 18:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Doesn't that make your skin crawl?
• 18:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: These crushing chompers are used for cracking open shells of crustaceans and mollusks.
• 18:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thankfully, these fish haven't developed a taste for humans.
• 18:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Saying that, if startled, they won't hesitate to clamp down on anybody that gets too close.
• 18:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Imagine how painful it'd be to have those massive mullers sinking into your flesh.
• 18:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Speaking of fearsomely-fanged fish, that brings us to the Pauku.
• 18:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: This close relative of the piranha is less known, but even more terrifying.
• 18:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Growing to three and a half feet and weighing in at a whopping 88 pounds, this fish's most striking trait is its teeth.
• 18:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like the sheep's headfish, pocus are fitted with equally creepy molar-like teeth.
• 19:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: These omnivorous fish found throughout the Amazon use their strong jaws and crushing teeth to feed on tree nuts that fall onto the river.
• 19:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Saying that, there have been reports over the years of these fish biting a very different kind of nut.
• 19:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you heard that right?
• 19:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Still, all you gent's listening need and worry too much.
• 19:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: These reports have never been validated, so chances are any guys that enter pack you filled sections of the Amazon River won't require any unwanted surgery afterwards.
• 19:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's not to say these fish are completely harmless, however.
• 19:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: You see, back in 2004, a young Scottish girl dangled her hand into a pack you filled tank.
• 19:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Within seconds, one of the teethy tropical fish chomp down on one of her fingers, not letting go even as she pulled her hand out of the water.
• 19:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: The brutal clamp down was so nasty the girl needed plastic surgery to repair the wound, talk about a frightful bite.
• 20:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: The Amazon River is also home to around 1,300 species of catfish with some that look big enough to hunt down humans.
• 20:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, some of these catfish look big enough to swallow a person whole.
• 20:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yet the most feared catfish in these waters happens to also be the smallest.
• 20:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: The candiru is a species of parasitic catfish which usually won't grow to more than an inch long.
• 20:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: So what's the big deal?
• 20:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, Candiru love nothing more than feeding on blood.
• 20:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: To do this, they attach themselves to the gills of their fishy host before inserting their needle-like teeth and slurping down all of that red stuff.
• 20:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Okay, a parasitic blood-sucking fish sounds pretty gruesome, right?
• 20:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: But what if I told you the Condiru is capable of far, far worse?
• 20:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Let's just say, any men taking a whiz in the Amazon River's water may want to keep up very close eye on their paper.
• 20:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: You see supposedly the smell of urine attracts the crazed Candiru so much so the fish would jump out of the water before.
• 21:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Uh, taking a trip upstream.
• 21:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: Once inside the man's your breath, rather fish will then hook itself in place using the spines on its gills, unsurprisingly causing excruciating pain and requiring surgical removal.
• 21:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yikes!
• 21:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Fortunately for all you guys listening, there's a decent chance things may not be as bad as they first seen.
• 21:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Other than a few anecdotal tales, there's little credible evidence that a candiru has ever invaded a human's private parts.
• 21:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: The most recent reported case occurred in 1997 when a Brazilian doctor claimed to have removed a candiru from a man's urethra.
• 21:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yet inconsistencies in the account like the fish's reported size have left experts skeptical.
• 21:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: What's more research conducted in 2001 revealed that candiru hunt, primarily by sight, not smell, which makes the idea of them being attracted to urine highly unlikely.
• 22:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: Given all that, tales of these pesky parasitic fish heading straight for human peepies are likely the stuff of fiction.
• 22:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even still, would you really want a temp fate by taking a whiz in the Amazon River?
• 22:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Considering all the cursed creatures we've met so far, it may seem surprising that a small statured bird that dines on nothing but insects is one of the scariest animals in the Amazon.
• 22:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: But scary the Po2 certainly is, in total seven species of Po2 haunt the Amazon rainforest with most featuring unsettling yellow eyes that seemed to burn straight their through you.
• 22:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yikes!
• 22:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: Those eyes look like they've witnessed some things.
• 22:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, there's one particular species of potu that turns up the creepometer even more.
• 22:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Say hello to the great potu, it has enormous jet black eyes like polished ping pong balls and a hauntingly wide mouth that looks like it could stare straight through your very soul.
• 23:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: But even when potu birds have their eyes shut, they can still be terribly terrifying.
• 23:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: You see these freaky foul have unusual slits in their eyelids.
• 23:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: even when their eyes are closed.
• 23:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's right, they're always watching.
• 23:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: Creepy are still, despite its ability to watch your every move, you'd probably never notice it.
• 23:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: During the day, they'll spend most of their time perched up right on a tree stump, relying on their excellent camouflage to blend in with their surroundings.
• 23:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: But as nightfalls, the Po2 becomes active opening, it's enormous haunting mouth to snatch insects from the air, swallowing them whole
• 23:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: However, what really summits this bird as a creature of nightmares is their cry.
• 23:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Take the low-pitched wailing call of the Great Potu, which eerily echoes through the pitch black rain forest.
• 24:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's a deep, mournful grown that sounds almost human, a haunting moan drifting through the darkness that you'd never want to hear alone at night.
• 24:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Even small insect eating birds found in the Amazon are terrifying.
• 24:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Man, this place is truly cursed.
• 24:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, that just about rounds up the scariest animals found in the Amazon, which crazy critter do you think sounds most frightening?
• 24:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Let me know in the comments if the platform allows it,
• 24:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for watching.