Can some one tell me what kind of teeth fish have? In one of the posts Kiara said her betta “bit her and she screamed”. I can’t imagine that any of these 2" to 4" FW fish have teeth that could even come close to scratching a human’s skin. I am not about to dissect one to find out either. I cleaned a lot of pan fish in my younger days and all I could feel was a sort of little ridge like a metal file. When we would swim in a lake we could feel the fish nibble at our legs sometimes, but it certainly wasn’t of any concern. (I am not talking about your cichlids or other larger trophy fish like bass and pike.) I always thought fish kind of “nibbled” if the food was soft (like an earthworm for example) or swallowed an object whole, if their mouth was big enough.
Fish Teeth?
- Thread starter Thyra
- Start date
I have heard my betta crunching on his food pellets! 
BTW, I know that this has nothing to do with fish (except the tank), but I have something that I just wanna say. I am getting a possibly 25 gallon tank from a store that has gone out of business, and I am getting it for $20! It has been used, but I am not going to use it for fish... I am going to keep HAMSTERS in it!!!! I love hamsters! With their tickley whiskers, their fuzzy fur, their puny tails...........
Sorry, anyways, I thought for a time that my betta had teeth, but I don't thing you would want to meet a piranha...
BTW, I know that this has nothing to do with fish (except the tank), but I have something that I just wanna say. I am getting a possibly 25 gallon tank from a store that has gone out of business, and I am getting it for $20! It has been used, but I am not going to use it for fish... I am going to keep HAMSTERS in it!!!! I love hamsters! With their tickley whiskers, their fuzzy fur, their puny tails...........
Sorry, anyways, I thought for a time that my betta had teeth, but I don't thing you would want to meet a piranha...
Last edited:
Most fish have teeth, but a lot of popular aquarium fish have pharyngeal teeth (in the throat, not mouth), including the goldfish. They can use the teeth which on the top to crush food against a boney plate on the bottom of the throat.
Otos and other suckermouth fish have teeth in a round 'comb' type arrangement to rasp algae from hard surfaces, much like sandpaper does.
Otos and other suckermouth fish have teeth in a round 'comb' type arrangement to rasp algae from hard surfaces, much like sandpaper does.
Thanks OC! Now I am curious about just how, when these small fish are harassing each other, do they do any real damage? I can see where they could stress another fish to death and fin nip because I assume fins are fragile, but as far as biting chunks out of live flesh?? (Remember I am talking small aquarium size fish) Am I correct that, although they nibble food, once its in their mouth, they swallow it whole - they don't chew?
It depends, ive seen Ferdnan "chew" his pellets before swallowing if there a bit big.
On your thing where fish loose body parts. If i take my fist, and his your arm repeatedly as hard as i can, it will soften and damage the area, eventually after enough hits, i could essentially break your arm off. Im thinking the same goes for a Tetra hitting another in the side enough times. Yes, fins are very fragile thyra, my old betta Betti lost parts of his fin all the time because he loved to rub his tail on decor. I can pet Ferdnan and his fins feel like over cooked cabbage, i dont do this often at all thou cause it rubs off his slime coat.
Ive seen cichlids on videos engulf a goldfish, chew a bit, spit it out and do that several times before swallowing it completely (I know thats awful :/ )
On your thing where fish loose body parts. If i take my fist, and his your arm repeatedly as hard as i can, it will soften and damage the area, eventually after enough hits, i could essentially break your arm off. Im thinking the same goes for a Tetra hitting another in the side enough times. Yes, fins are very fragile thyra, my old betta Betti lost parts of his fin all the time because he loved to rub his tail on decor. I can pet Ferdnan and his fins feel like over cooked cabbage, i dont do this often at all thou cause it rubs off his slime coat.
Ive seen cichlids on videos engulf a goldfish, chew a bit, spit it out and do that several times before swallowing it completely (I know thats awful :/ )
I would doubt one small fish could hit another - free swimming (not against something) - to do much damage. Remember - I am not talking about any fish over 3" - 4" inches. I have seen the teeth on muskies and northern pike etc. From what I read, in their natural habitat when a fish threatens another, the trespasser can just swim away. Remember: I am not talking about fish that are seeking other fish for food, but I would bet that rarely would bettas fight to death in the wild. (Unless two, of course got trapped in a little mud puddle.) We put fish in confined areas and that makes a big difference. I doubt that in the huge commercial aquariums, like where you see scuba divers swimming with the fish, that there are many fish fights.
some aquarium fish do have teeth. i know my cichlids do have teeth. thing is it's mostly like sand paper. nothing to break the skin of a person though. and i feed mine small frogs time to time and they will rip legs off or even rip the whole frog in half when they get into a frenzy. and it's not over time, they will inhale the head and snap to the side and the frog is halved. so it has to be from the teeth.
OMG - how did we get here?? But as long as we are I will add that is difficult to tell when someone is really dead if they have a pace maker - at least for a short while. My biggest fear was calling the funeral home prematurely. As far as frogs are concerned - as a kid (Wisconsin) we ate lots of frog legs, but now days around where I live we don't see that many frogs - just those little tree frogs. I wish we had those big green frogs with the black spots circled in gold. I miss them and if we had any I certainly wouldn't eat them.