How did piranhas acquire a taste for blood?
The ferocious piranha is a carnivore, which hunts in schools of 30 or more, preying on animals such as baby birds that fall out of their nests and into the river. They have teeth so sharp that the Indians of South America use them as razors. When God created the world it was perfect; there was no death. It was not until Adam sinned that death entered the world. So what did these piranhas eat before the Fall?
Scientists have now found evidence that the ancestors of the piranha once ate plants. The pacu fish are related to the piranha; recent DNA analysis shows no significant genetic difference between the two species. In fact, the pacu fish are often misidentified with the piranha. Yet pacu fish are mainly vegetarian; they eat aquatic plants and fruit that have fallen in the water. In the same way, piranhas will, on occasion, eat plant matter, even though they are primarily carnivores. So why did some of the piranha/pacu fish become carnivores and others vegetarians?
After man sinned, mutations became a reality. These mutations may have led some of the original vegetarian kind to start scavenging dead animals and fish, which they found floating in the water. The pacu and the piranha are a variation of a kind, just like we have lots of varieties or breeds of dogs, but they are still dogs. So what did all of the ancestors of the piranhas eat in the beginning? Plants!
(Source: Inspired Evidence – Paul A. Bartz “Vegetarian Piranhas?” Letting God Create Your Day 2010 pp.99)
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