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 Piranha

Piranha

A Short Reader

Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 6 to 8
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   7.65

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    potentially, razor-sharp, contend, piranha, piranhas, happening, purpose, tourist, material, stress, against, dangerous, such, length, someone, average

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Piranha
By Mary Lynn Bushong 		  
1     If someone mentions the fish called piranha, what do you think? Do you think of thousands of hungry mouths attacking an animal, leaving nothing but bones in minutes? That is how piranhas have been portrayed in movies, but is it true? Not according to the people who leave near them all the time. Native fishermen contend that only careless people are injured by piranha.
 
2     Amazonian fresh-water fish, piranhas are known for their razor-sharp, interlocking teeth. Some piranhas don't eat meat at all. They eat seeds and plant material that fall into the water.
 
3     Not usually a large fish, piranha average about eight inches or about 20 cm in length, but some rare individuals may grow as large as 24 inches or 60 cm long. Attacks against humans by the fish are rare, usually only happening in summer months when water levels are low and the fish are under stress.

Paragraphs 4 to 5:
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