An intrepid British angler today told how he snared a predator which kills men - by biting off their testicles.
Fearless Jeremy Wade, 53, spent weeks hunting for the fish in remote Papua New Guinea after locals reported a mysterious beast which was castrating young fishermen.
He finally unmasked the perpetrator as the Pacu fish - known locally as The Ball Cutter - and managed to catch one in his small wooden fishing boat.
Brave: Jeremy Wade, pictured with the ferocious 'Ball Cutter' fish which has killed two men by biting off their testicles
Brave: Jeremy Wade, pictured with the ferocious 'Ball Cutter' fish which has killed two men by biting off their testicles
Mr Wade wrestled the 40lb monster on to the floor of his boat and opened its snapping jaws with his naked hands - to discover a jaw-dropping array of human-style teeth.
The Ball Cutter boasts an impressive set of man-like molars, which tear off the testicles of unwitting hunters, leaving them to bleed to death.
Mr Wade, from Bath, Somerset, told how he reeled in the Ball Cutter as part of his new series of River Monsters, aired on ITV next week.
He said: 'I had heard of a couple of fishermen in Papua New Guinea who had been castrated by something in the water.
'The bleeding was so severe that they died. The locals told me that this thing was like a human in the water, biting at the testicles of fishermen. They didnt know what it was.
'It is a hot and dirty area so the people would often go to the water with their children to wash but obviously they were very worried about this thing in the water.
'Amazingly, these things are quite elusive so we had to be patient catching one. We put a line into the water and waited for it to bite.
'When I reeled it in, it had this mouth which was surprisingly human-like, it is almost like they have teeth specially made for crushing.
'They are like human molars and the fish have powerful jaw muscles. They are very deep bodied and solid like a carp, with strong muscles.'
At least two fishermen have bled to death after being bitten by the beast although Jeremy believes they were 'pretty unlucky' as it is quite shy.
Fierce: The pacu fish have human-like teeth and powerful jaw muscles
Pacu fish are usually found in the Amazon, where they need their teeth to crack into the tough cases of nuts and seeds.
The previously vegetarian fish were introduced to Papua New Guinea 15 years ago to increase stocks.
They quickly used their special technique to chomp meat due to a lack of suitable vegetation in the waters - making short work of human testicles.
Former biology teacher Jeremy luckily just sustained a small nick to his knuckles during his encounter with the Ball Cutter, despite wearing just shorts and a T-shirt.
The angler of 40 years said: 'It is about going in to these situations with the right information to know what you are dealing with.
'It is all about prevention. But there is this fear running through you. As long as I know what I am about to face and we have all of the precautions then I am happy.
'The fish was remarkably muscular, it was kicking so hard to get away from me but I wasnt really injured.'
Jeremy spent 14 weeks travelling around the world - from Australia to Suriname in South America - to film his third series of his hit show this year.
He captured a total of seven beasts, including an electric eel which stopped human hearts in Brazil, before releasing them back into the wild.
Poster Comment:
The previously vegetarian fish were introduced to Papua New Guinea 15 years ago to increase stocks.
They quickly used their special technique to chomp meat due to a lack of suitable vegetation in the waters - making short work of human testicles.
The Pacu will now rival the Candiru as the most feared fresh water fish in the world.
The Candiru, a tiny member of the catfish family can swim into a male or female urethra and then open its barbed umbrella. It then survives on blood and tissue. A true horror story.....
The Pacu fish's land companion is the Bobbitt. Avoid both at all costs.
Ah, yes, The Bobbitt, colloquially known as "The Lorena fish". (it's rumored that John Wayne made a catastrophically poor judgment error when he called her that while neglecting his spousal duties, shortly before drinking himself into dreamland)
There are now two things that can ruin your warm, wet and unsuspecting wedding tackle and one of them is....fish!
Fearless Jeremy Wade, 53, spent weeks hunting for the fish in remote Papua New Guinea after locals reported a mysterious beast which was castrating young fishermen.
I like watching his show River Monsters. There is also an Unhooked version.
As Gary Lloyd said, "When the governments boot is on your throat, whether it is a left boot or a right boot is of no consequence."
Hey Shoo.....sure you can and if you run short of these nut nippers, give me a yell. I have extra and I'll be more than happy to dump them into your tub :P