Fish with ‘human teeth’ makes a splash as seafood find goes viral
This fish needs a good dentist.
A Brazilian businesswoman Paula Moreira went viral earlier this week after she shared images of a fish with human-like teeth.
The video, which has been viewed more than 5.2 million times on her Instagram account, showed the fish lying on a grill while her family was on vacation in southeastern Brazil.
Moreira filmed herself playing with the fish’s mouth and lifting its upper lip to show off its creepy crunches.
‘No, but teeth like that? Like dentures? Look here!’ she joked.
Moreira then pulled down the fish’s lower lip and was amazed at the full row of teeth.
“They look like human teeth, no joke,” she said.
Moreira said some of her Instagram followers initially thought the video was simply “fake news.”
A Brazilian businesswoman went viral earlier this week after she shared images of a fish with human-like teeth
The video, which has been viewed more than 5.2 million times on her Instagram account, showed the fish lying on a grill while her family was on vacation in southeastern Brazil.
Paula Moreira told DailyMail.com she ‘didn’t have the courage to eat the fish’
She told DailyMail.com that the catch was one of three her family bought for $49 on December 30 after a beach outing with her grandmother, who has Alzheimer’s disease.
They were not aware of the fish’s unique characteristics until they returned to their rental accommodation for the family dinner.
‘I was shocked when I saw that fish. I thought it was so bizarre and funny at the same time,” Moreira said.
“That’s why I grabbed my phone and recorded that video and posted it to my Instagram account.”
She said her uncle seasoned the fish with garlic and salt and grilled it for 30 minutes.
However, the fish lover left the meal because it reminded her of a ‘human’.
“I didn’t have the courage to eat it,” she said.
“But my family ate it and they said it tasted like fish, just like the others, and it’s really tasty.”
Paula Moreira’s family shows off the fish they bought on a local beach for a family meal
Moreira said her uncle seasoned the fish with garlic and salt and cooked it for 30 minutes
The fish, a sea bream, is found in the western Atlantic Ocean.
They can grow up to 35 centimeters in length and weigh as much as 35 kilos.
Marine biologist João Gasparani told Brazilian news channel G1 that the fish’s strong teeth are crucial for feeding.
‘It has strong incisors that resemble human teeth. This is due to evolution,” he explained.
“The animal eats crustaceans and even pulls clams and clams from the rocks, so it needs very strong teeth,” added Gasparani, who is part of a research team from Espirito Santo Federal University.
“It also has teeth on the roof of its mouth, and these teeth are all rounded, so it crushes shells, snails and crabs.”