RAVENOUS piranha fish and deadly poisonous frogs will be amongst the inhabitants lying in wait for visitors to a new exhibition at Blackpool's Sea Life centre.

The centre is spending £200,000 on its first ever freshwater exhibition, The AmaZone, featuring some of the amazing creatures living in the world's second longest river.

Work has already started to install four new display tanks in addition to five existing tanks in the new feature area, which will be themed to make visitors feel they have stepped into the jungle.

"The new feature maintains our policy of providing a new attraction every year, to continually improve the Centre and provide a strong incentive for people to come back again and again," said manager Julie Rivas.

Razor-toothed piranhas will be one of the star attractions. These carnivorous fish can reduce an animal the size of a pig to a skeleton in less than five minutes.

Keepers will make sure they are well fed on a diet of bloodworms, cod fillet and beefheart.

Less well known creatures will also be on display, such as the Amazonian leaf fish which lulls its prey in by looking like a leaf and floating on the surface and drifting on the current.

Special precautions will have to be taken to host two species of deadly 'poison dart frogs,' although they will not be as dangerous as their wild counterparts.

"They acquire their poison from particular insects they prey on in the rainforest," said supervisor, Brendan Malone.

"Ours will be fed on small crickets and fruit flies, but they will nevertheless have traces of poison, and so will be kept in very secure tanks and there will be a strict protocol in place for feeding them and maintaining their tanks."

The zone will have a strong emphasis on conservation, with interpretation and talks highlighting the threats facing the Amazon through deforestation, pollution and other problems.

The new attraction is set to open at Easter in time for the new season.