People always attracted amazing underwater inhabitants - dangerous, exciting nerves possessing unusual appearance and no less impressive abilities. This category includes electrical eel - is there many creatures that can generate electrical discrections? This guest is South America, The joy of aquarists, well adapts to accommodation in home reservoirs, but many are solved on the establishment of such an extraordinary and ambiguous pet? And besides, the future owners should know more in detail, is all the bikes about these harsh beings are reality or are it just a horror stories?
Electruguran in a natural environment
For the first time information about these amazing creatures The Europeans fell from Spanish conquerors. First detailed description dated 1729th year. Almost four dozen, relying on the development of a zoologist from the Netherlands Yana Gronovius, the Swedish naturalist Karl Lynnee compiled a detailed description of the individuals and called them a scientific - Gymnotus Electricu.
Do not stand these inhabitants to be confused with eels, despite the same name, they are not even relatives. Electrodis are representatives of the class of amphibian fish.
Naturalists were difficult to believe that underwater inhabitants are able to strike, using electrical discharges. Initially, it existed that the eel does not hit the current, but "freezes" his prey. But in the summer of 1772, a member of the Royal Community, John Walsh, was proved that the creatures are really devastating victims by electrical.
Judging by research, electric acne exist not one millennium, and during this period they adapted to habitat in an unfavorable environment, they can survive even in the stamped, overgrown with water bodies. More often these inhabitants are found in muddy fresh waters, Without a course, which contains very little oxygen.
They breathe atmospheric airTherefore, in order to pollute the air, eels must rise to the surface of the water every 10-15 minutes and capture the next air portion. If the individuals can not do this, then they suffocate and drown. But this ability has and positive side - The eel is able to be outside the aquatic environment for several hours. He will not die if his torso and mouth will be moisturized.
Employment and features of the structure
If estimated appearance These creatures, they are difficult to call cute or pleasant, they look like fossil creatures from ancient times:
Electrodis in life is single, most often they are located at the bottom of the reservoir, which still hangs among dense vegetation. They are nightly predators showing maximum activity in the dark. The main diet consists of fish trivia, amphibians, raffs, and if Ugry is lucky, penette or small animals fall into his "menu". Like snakes, these creatures swallow mining entirely.
Unique features
According to scientists, in the ability of these fish to create electric energy There is nothing unusual. Almost all living organisms are made to one degree or another. For example, the management of the human brain with muscle fibers is also carried out thanks to electric signals.
The organism of the enemy produces electricity in the same way as the nervous, muscular fibers in the human body. In electrocytes cells accumulate energy charges extracted from food. Due to the synchronous generation of the action potentials, a short electric discharge. Due to the fact that thousands of small charges formed by each cell are summed up, voltage up to 650 volts occurs.
Acne can emit electrical discorders of different powerAnd each of them has its own purpose: the impulse can become defensive, arise during the hunt, rest or search actions. When the eel goes down to the bottom and quietly rests, its body does not empty any signals.
Hunting impulses
The hungry part begins to slowly move in water, while generating the weak up to 50 volts impulses, the duration of which does not exceed 2 ms. When the fish notices a possible sacrifice, their frequency and amplitude increases to 300-600 volts, they are from 0.6 to 2 ms.
Thanks to such "senders", the hunter can paralyze production. To join the fish that is lion The diet of these predators, they use pulses with high frequency. Breaks between discharges allow an ugring to restore energy.
When the mining is immobilized, it goes to the bottom, and the fish, not in a hurry, is approaching it and swallows completely. She then requires rest - the period during which food should digest.
Protective impulses
The enemies who wish to "offend" the electrogritis will not last - these individuals use rare high-frequency pulses - 2-7 pieces, and 3 search with a small amplitude.
Electropolokation
Thanks to the use of electrical organs, representatives of this species are not only hunting and protected. They also use discharges with a weak power of up to 10 volts for the electrolocation. From nature, these fish have bad eyesight, and as individuals are aging, it becomes much worse. Information about it comes to others by other means - through electrical sensors located on their body. 
In photographs made in under aquatic environmentThese receptors are noticeable for individuals - the electric field begins to pulsate the moving fish. It is located near the creature to appear any subject, the field shape changes significantly. Powder in the course of special receptors, which individuals catch the elktropol distortion created by them, they detect the road and hiding sacrifice in a muddy water medium.
Such incredible sensitivity can be called an excellent advantage that allows the fish to be more successful in the hunt and protection than creatures that rely on more familiar visual, tactile and other organs.
Electricity generations
Generation of discharges with different power are engaged in organs different typeswhich occupy almost 80% of the length of the fish body. Between themselves, acne are able to communicate at a distance of seven meters.
Again, for this, they emit a series of certain electrical impulses. The larger the individual, the more powerful its discharge, in the meter individuals, their power does not exceed 350 volts. And this is enough for half a dozen of the electric lamps.
Protection of acne from electric destruction
Electricity, which generate acne, when hunt, can reach the power of six hundred volts. it deadly weapon Against the inhabitants of a small size - frogs, fish, crustaceans. More large representatives water World, like Caymans, Anacond and Tapirov, do not rush to dangerous areas.
Why do these dangerous creatures can affect other inhabitants, but do not suffer from killing discharges themselves? It's all about the location of vital important organs Fish, their brain and heart muscle are near the head and have protection from fatty tissues that are isolated. Skin surfaces of individuals possess the same effect. Experts note that fish with damaged skin are most vulnerable to electrical shocks.
In addition, another feature was revealed - during the pairing of individuals generate discharges with high power, but they do not harm the partner. Moreover, if this happens outside the marriage period, the individual that has received such a discharge may die. This confirms the fact that acne can activate and disconnect the system that protects them from the electric current.
How to multiply electrical acne?
These inhabitants are spawn, preferring to do it in a dry season. Couples are also reunited thanks to the pulses they are actively sent to marriage. The construction of a secluded nesting is engaged in the male, he builds it from saliva. And the female puts up to 1700 eggs into it. Electrodis are thoughtful parents And together take off the offspring.
In hatched fools, there are light-ocher color, some individuals have marble divorces. Those individuals who proceed earlier than the rest eating the remaining bars. The basic diet of only the offspring appeared is small invertebrates. 
The development of electrical bodies in the kids begins after the size of individuals will reach 40 mm. Small larvae can also generate a current, but only with a very modest power - 3-4 dozen Millivolt. If you put on the palm of 2-4-hdneal fry, weak tingling feels. Independent individuals become, reaching 10-12 cm long.
- spacious aquarium, no less than 3 meters long, one and a half-meter depth;
- water of certain parameters: with a temperature of about 25 ° C, rigidity from 11 to 13 mol / m³ and acidity - 7-8 pH.
Specialists do not advise frequently replace water, as this may cause the formation of ulcerations on the skin of fish and the subsequent death. The mucous membrane coating includes antibacterial substances protecting the skin from an ulcers, and with a frequent change of water, their concentration is steadily decreased, skin covering It becomes vulnerable.
Acne is rather aggressively refer to their fellows, even outside the spawning period, so it is not recommended to start more than one individual in one reservoir.
Is it worth a person to fear this creature?
If you consider all the information, and it often turns out to be false, electric eel is extremely dangerous creaturewhich is capable of killing even an adult, physically strong person. But in fact, when receiving a discharge from a small individual, a person may lose consciousness, but does not lead to the death of heaving. The current of this creature causes muscle tissue to shrink and leads to its numbness. This prenegenial feeling can last not one hour.
The eels of large size generate a current of higher voltage, and the consequences can really be critical. These predators will not pass even before more overall animals. And if they find themselves a few meters from him, eel prefers not to wonder, but to go to the attack. Therefore, approach these creatures is closer than three meters, it is not worth it.
In some world cuisines electric fishoK is considered a real delicacy, catching them is enough dangerous species Activities. But local residents They showed ingenuity and engage in catching acne with the help of cows, since they practically do not act on them.
Shepherds direct herds into the water and expect when alarmed, loudly and ribbed animals calm down. Then the livestock is then kicked out of the reservoir and with the help of networks they catch individuals that have already spent their discharges. Electric eel It is not able to constantly generate electricals, and over time the discharge weakens and completely stop.
Electric eel - dangerous predatorIf you compare the number of his victims with the "success" of piras, the latter are 100% losing. Of course, not every owner will decide to start such an ambiguous pet, but if the desire does not weaken, it is worth a pre-acquaintance with his habits and needs.
Photo of electrical thoughts
Video about electric acne
In mysterious and muddy waters, Amazon is hidden many dangers. One of them is an electric eel (lat. Electrophorus Electricus.) - sole representative Detachment of electric acne. It is found in the northeast of South America and is found in small difts of the average, as well as lower current powerful river Amazon.
The average length of the adult electrical eel meter-half, although there are also three-meter instances. Weighs such a fish about 40 kg. She has an elongated body and slightly flattened from the sides. Actually, this eel is not very similar to the fish: there is no scales, from the fins only the tail and chest, and the plus it breathes with atmospheric air.
The fact is that the tributaries, where electric acne lives, too small and muddy, and the water in them is practically devoid of oxygen. Therefore, nature rewarded the animal with unique vascular tissues in oral cavityWith the help of which the eel absorbs oxygen directly from the outer air. True for this it falls every 15 minutes to climb the surface. But if the eel suddenly turns out to be outside the water, he will be able to live a few hours, provided that his body and mouth will not be powered.
Color at electrical coal olive-brown, which allows it to remain unnoticed for potential prey. Only the throat and the lower part of the head are bright orange, but this circumstance is hardly helping the unfortunate victims of electric eel. It is worthwhile to shudder with all his slippery body, as a discharge is formed, voltage up to 650V (mostly 300-350V), which instantly kills the entire nearby small fish. Mining falls to the bottom, and the predator picks it up, swallows entirely and diminished nearby, to relax a little.
I wonder how he manages to generate such a powerful discharge? Just all his body cover special organs, which consist of special cells. These cells are consistently interconnected using nervous channels. In the front of the body "Plus", in the rear "minus". Weak electricity is formed at the very beginning and, passing consistently from the organ to the organ, it is gaining power to hit as efficiently as possible.
Electric eel himself believes that it is endowed reliable protectionTherefore, it is not in a hurry to give up even a larger opponent. There were cases when the eels were not hired even in front of crocodiles, and for people and at all should avoid meetings with them. Of course, it is unlikely that the discharge will kill an adult, but the feeling of it will be more than unpleasant. In addition, there is a risk of loss of consciousness, and if at the same time be in water, you can easily drown.
Electric eel is very aggressive, he attacks immediately and is not going to warn anyone about his intentions. The safe distance from the meter eel is at least three meters - this should be enough to avoid dangerous current.
In addition to the main organs producing electricity, there is an eel and one more, with which he exploits the surrounding environment. This peculiar locator emits low-frequency waves, which, returning, notify their host about the obstacles in front or the presence of suitable livelihood.
Basic Electric Thread Data :
Length: up to 2.4 m.
Mass: 45 kg.
Related species. The acne family includes 16 species, one of them is European eel.
The color of the eel - the oline-orange, the body in length reaches two meters, the head is wide and flat. The electrical organs of the eel are located in the tail, the length of which is three quarters of the entire body length.
Lifestyle
Habits: Single.
Food: small fish, frogs, young individuals eating invertebrates.
Life expectancy: It is definitely unknown how many years electric eel lives. Older river eel Was at the age of 88, about so much lives and electric eel.
In muddy waters, where acne lives, the visibility is insufficient, so it rarely relies on vision (vision of eel is very bad). Exact information About the world of eel receives with the help of its electrical organs.
Young electric acne catch invertebrates living on the bottom. Fish finds prey with the help of electrical organs that allow it to discover the victim, even if it is fixed.
Sensitive sensors fix and small electrical impulses, which is caused by the movement of muscles of other fish, for example, during the breathing of the latter.
As soon as the eel discovers its prey, he immediately sends a series of electrical discharges that are paralyzed or even kill the victim. Obel eats only one row of small teeth, so scientists make an assumption that prey he swallows entirely.
Reproduction of electric eel
There is almost nothing unknown on the reproduction of an electric eel. It is assumed that the fry appear from caviar. About breeding electrical
It is possible that, like other types of fish capable of producing an electric field, acne use electrical bodies to exchange information on accessories to a certain floor, about age and ready to be mating.
At a certain time, acne suddenly disappear and then returned accompanied by young fish about 10 cm long. It is assumed that the fories appear from caviar, but this version has been not proven to this day.
Electric eel - This is the most dangerous of all electric fish. Other electric fish, such as skate or som, can cause an electric discharge by force from five to two hundred volts.
Electrical organs. Authorities that produce electricity are located in the rear of the body of the eel. They consist of a beam of very thin electric plates (EP), which are about 10 thousand. Each of them produces a weak electric field. When the eel activates them, EP produces short electrical impulses. With low voltage, electric can be used as radar. When some kind of fish is approaching, the eel enhances the discharge intensity and paralyzes production.
Accommodation places. Motherland of eel - South America. Lives in the Guyana Rivers, in the Orinoco and Amazon Delta.
Preservation. In South America, its meat is eaten, but in other regions it is not used for these purposes. The existence of an eel threatens only water pollution.
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Among the few representatives of the animal world are the owners of amazing ability to produce and accumulate electricity. One of them is electric eel (Electrophorus Electricus).
This amazing Fish dwells in small rivers in the north of South America, as well as in the lower and central Region Amazon pool. Although electric eel and dwells in water as a fish, the structure of its body makes it breathe with atmospheric air. Every portion of air he gets, rising upstairs, about once every 15 minutes. Simply put - he can drown, if it does not be able to snap to the surface on time. Such an ability to breathe air through the air for several hours to leave the reservoirs.
But the most amazing quality of this fish is all, it is considered to be its ability to produce electricity. Since the water is an excellent conductor, it is noteworthy that the eel himself does not suffer from electrical discharges. How does it happen?
The eel has unique bodies resembling battery banks on the device. They occupy about 40% of his body. Each generating cage current contains a small amount of negatively charged ions inside, and outside the ion cells are charged positively.
Naturally, such an electric potential is negligible. But when the number of such cells has from 6 to 10 thousand in one chain, the voltage can reach 500 volts! Such parallel connected chains there are about 700 on each side of the eel's body. Their total category is approximately 1 ampru!
Such a blow of electricity is able to knock down a horse from his feet, for several hours to paralyze, and even kill a person, but it does not harm myself at all. This is due to the fact that the possibility for discharge gives two small membranes. The skin of the eel has insulating features, and electrical cells are connected only among themselves, and isolated from other parts of the body.
Electricity for eel performs several functions. This is the protection, and the tool for hunting, as well as used to navigate. Acne is not able for a long time Stepically produce electricity. Each time the discharge becomes weaker. It will take several hours to restore them in full.
Responsive locals are considered to be a delicacy. But to catch an eel is deadly dangerous! Fishermen noticed that the cows are "steadyly carry" the protection of electric fish, so they are used for the forced "discharge of water batteries". The horned "occupiers" is driven into the river, and eels, defending the territory, attack the aliens. When cows stop being frightened and rushed, they are expelled ashore. Then the networks are caught out of the angry, but already safe acne.
Physics in the animal world: Electric eel and its "energy station"
Electric eel (Source: YouTube)
Fish view of electric eel (Electrophorus Electricus) is the only representative of the kind of electric eels (Electrophorus). It is found in a number of inflow of the middle and lower flow of the Amazon. Fish body size reaches 2.5 meters in length, and weight - 20 kg. It feeds electric acne fish, amphibians, if lucky - birds or small mammals. Scientists study the electrical eel of dozens (if not hundreds) years, but only now they began to clear up some of the features of the structure of his body and a number of bodies.
Moreover, the ability to produce electricity is not the only unusual feature of the electric eel. For example, it breathes atmospheric air. This is possible thanks large quantity special view Pool cavity fabrics penetrated blood vessels. For breathing, Ugry needs to pop up to the surface every 15 minutes. It cannot take oxygen from the water, since it dwells in very muddy and fine water bodies, where very little oxygen. But, of course, the main distinctive trait Electric eel is its electrical organs.
They play the role not only weapons to stun or kill His victims, which eel feeds. The discharge generated by electrical fishe organs may be weak, up to 10 V such discharges of the eel generates for the electrical flooring. The fact is that the fish has special "electric desptores" that allow you to determine the distortion of the electric field caused by its own body. Electrology helps Ugry find the way in muddy water And find the hidden victims. The eel can give a strong discharge of electricity, and at this time the fishing fish or amphibian starts chaotic to twitch due to convulsion. These fluctuations in the predator easily discovers and eats the victim. Thus, this fish is both electricallyceptive and electrical heated.
Interestingly, the discharges of various forces, the eel generates with the help of the electrical organs of three types. They occupy approximately 4/5 of the length of the fish. High voltage produces Hanter and Mena organs, and small currents for navigation purposes and communication goals generates the SAX organ. The main body and the Hanter body are placed at the bottom of the body of the eel, the Saxian body is in the tail. Acne "communicate" with each other with electrical signals up to seven meters away. With a certain series of electrical discharges, they can attract other individuals from their own species.
How does electric eel generate an electrical discharge?
The acne of this species, like a number of other "electrified" fish reproduce electricity in the same way that the nerves with muscles in the organisms of other animals, only for this uses electrocites - specialized cells. The task is performed using the Na-K-ATPase enzyme (by the way, the same enzyme is very important for mollusks of the genus Nautilus (lat. Nautilus)). Thanks to the enzyme, a ion pump is formed, pumping out sodium ions from the cell and pumping potassium ions. Potassium is derived from cells due to special proteins that are part of the membrane. They form a kind of "potassium canal" through which potassium ions are derived. A positively charged ions are accumulated inside the cell, outside are negatively charged. There is an electric gradient. The difference in potentials as a result reaches 70 mV. In the membrane of the same cell of the electrical organ of eel, there are sodium channels through which sodium ions can again get into the cell. IN conventional conditions In 1 second, the pump displays about 200 sodium ions from the cell and at the same time transfers to a cell approximately 130 potassium ions. On the square micrometer membrane can accommodate 100-200 such pumps. Usually these channels are closed, but if necessary, they open. If this happened, the gradient of the chemical potential leads to the fact that sodium ions come into cells again. There is a general change in voltage from -70 to +60 mV, and the cell gives a discharge of 130 mV. The duration of the process is only 1 ms. Electrical cells are connected by the nerve fibers, the connection is consistent. ElectroCites constitute peculiar columns that are connected in parallel. General voltage The generated electrical signal reaches 650 V, the current is 1a. According to some data, the voltage can achieve even 1000 V, and the current is 2a.
ElectroCloches (electrical cells) of eel under the microscope
After the discharge, an ion pump appears again, and the electrical organs of the eel are charged. According to some scientists, there are 7 types of ion channels of the membrane of electrocyte cells. The location of these channels and the alternation of channel types affects the rate of production of electricity.
The discharge of the electrical battery
According to the results of the study of Kenneth Catania (Kennesth Catania) from the University of Vanderbilt (USA), the eel can use three types of discharge of its electrical organ. The first, as mentioned above is a series of low-voltage pulses that serve to communicate and navigation purposes.The second is a sequence of 2-3 high-voltage pulses with a duration of several milliseconds. This method is used by eel when hunting for hidden and hidden sacrifices. As soon as there are 2-3 discharge of high voltage, the muscles of the hidden sacrifices begin to shrink, and the eel can easily detect a potential food.
Third way - a number of high-voltage high-frequency discharges. The third method of eel uses when hunting, giving out per second to 400 pulses. This method paralyzes almost any animal of small and medium size (even a person) at a distance of up to 3 meters.
Who else is able to produce an electric current?
About 250 species are capable of this. Most electricity is only a means of navigation, such as in the case of Nielsky's elephant (Gnathonemus Petersii).But the electric discharge of sensitive strength is able to generate a few fish. These are electrical skates (a number of species), electric catfish and some others.
Electric catf
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