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The candirú, or toothpick fish, is found in the River [[Amazon]]. It is shaped like an [[eel]] and translucent, making it hard to see. It can grow up to six inches long. It is a parasite that swims into the gill cavities of other fish, holds itself in place with erectile spines, and latches on to an artery, feeding off the blood that pumps through it. It is attracted to urine as well as blood, and has been known to swim into body orifices and into the urethra, where it erects its spine and feeds as it would from a fish’s gills. It is almost impossible to remove without surgery.  

The candirú, or toothpick fish, is found in the River [[Amazon]]. It is shaped like an [[eel]] and translucent, making it hard to see. It can grow up to six inches long. It is a parasite that swims into the gill cavities of other fish, holds itself in place with erectile spines, and latches on to an artery, feeding off the blood that pumps through it. It is attracted to urine as well as blood, and has been known to swim into body orifices and into the urethra, where it erects its spine and feeds as it would from a fish’s gills. It is almost impossible to remove without surgery.  

Stories about the candirú swimming up a stream of urine were thought to be false, until one recent well-documented case.<ref> http://www.straightdope.com/columns/010907.html<ref>

Stories about the candirú swimming up a stream of urine were thought to be false, until one recent well-documented case.<ref> http://www.straightdope.com/columns/010907.html</ref>

==References==

==References==

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