The electric eel (Latin Electrophorus electricus) belongs to the Gymnotiformes order. It is not related to common eels and is the most dangerous of all fish that can generate electricity.
Its high-voltage discharge can shock a person. An adult produces a current with a voltage of up to 800 V. Negative charge is in its tail. The voltage of the generated current is directly proportional to its length.
One eel can generate enough electricity to light a house. Electrical organs are 10 thousand thin plates. They were formed from the muscles that have undergone changes. abdominal cavity... Most of the weight is carried by these organs.
Behavior
Electric eel is among the most large fish living on the territory South America... He prefers fresh and warm bodies of water with a small current. It can often be seen in the Amazon or Orinoco. He can settle in river valleys flooded by water and in the swampy lowlands of tropical forests.
Living in silted reservoirs with a small amount of oxygen in the water, the fish are forced to regularly rise to the surface in order to breathe a little. The ability to breathe oxygen helps her stay on land for several hours, provided that her body and oral cavity will be wet.
The eel leads a solitary life. He spends most of his time at the bottom of a river or lake, hiding among algae and snags. Climbs up periodically to replenish stocks fresh air... He has no lungs. The oral cavity is abundantly covered with special vessels that are capable of absorbing oxygen.
The fish is forced to rise to the surface every 10 minutes for a portion of oxygen. She has very poor eyesight and does not use it at all for orientation. The anal fin extends from the belly to the tail. With it, she can swim both forward and backward.
Hiding among the plants, the eel periodically scans the area around it with electricity.
Thus, he can find even a motionless victim. Its skin is abundantly equipped with receptors that can pick up small impulses of electrical current generated by other animals.
Hidden in ambush, the hunter waits for his prey, and then paralyzes it with a discharge. Having weak teeth, he completely swallows his prey.
Acne communicate with each other with weak discharges. The dominant male produces loud and frequent signals, while the females use shorter and longer ones.
Reproduction
Biologists have found no signs of gender differences in electric eels. Sometimes adults leave the permanent places residence. No one was able to observe the spawning site of representatives of this species, and to this day this information remains unknown. It is assumed that they use electrical discharges to recognize the sex of the partner and his sexual maturity.
Apparently eels spawn, although no one has discovered this yet. After a short period of time, adults return back, surrounded by young offspring.
The length of juveniles reaches 10 cm. They are colored light brown with a marble pattern. At first, young eels are under the auspices of older comrades, although they themselves are already very aggressive and do not like finding any other fish nearby.
Description
The length of adults reaches 2.5 m, and the weight is 45 kg. The blunt head is wide and large. The nostrils are located above upper lip... Small emerald green eyes are found at the top of the head.
The long rather large body has a serpentine shape. It lacks scales and electrical receptors are scattered all over it in the form of small holes. The anal fin extends from the belly to the tail. The electric organ is located on either side of the tail. Top part the body is olive-colored, and the abdomen is lighter in color.
Electric eel's lifespan natural conditions unknown. In captivity, some individuals live up to 18-20 years.
The only species of the genus Electrophorus... Despite the outward resemblance, it is not related to real eels.
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Who is Electric Eel
Electric eels
Electric stingray and eel
5 MONSTERS OF THE AMAZON RIVER
Subtitles
Area
They inhabit the rivers of the northeastern part of South America and tributaries of the middle and lower reaches of the Amazon.
Story
The Europeans received the first information about the electric eel from the Spanish conquerors. First detailed description was made in 1729. In 1766, Karl Linnaeus described the species based on the work of the Dutch scientist Jan Gronovius, giving him scientific name Gymnotus electricu.
Naturalists did not immediately believe that these fish strike with electricity. It was assumed that in some mysterious way they “freeze” their prey. However, in June 1772, Royal Society member John Walsh proved that eels use electricity to stun their victims.
Description
Length from 1 to 3 m, weight up to 40 kg. The skin of the electric eel is bare, without scales; the body is strongly elongated, rounded in the front part and somewhat compressed from the sides in the back part. The color of adult electric eels is olive brown, the underside of the head and throat is bright orange, the edge of the anal fin is light, and the eyes are emerald green.
Electrical organs
Interesting in the structure of electric eels are the electrical organs, which occupy about 4/5 of the body's length. Eel generates a discharge with voltage up to 1300 V and amperage up to 1 A. Positive charge is in the front of the body, negative - in the back. Electric organs are used by eels to defend against enemies and to paralyze prey, which are mostly small fish. There is also an additional electrical organ that acts as a locator. An electric shock from an adult electric eel can stun a horse.
Lifestyle
Almost nothing is known about the multiplication of electric eels. Electric eels do well in captivity and are often used to decorate large public aquariums. This fish is dangerous if it comes into direct contact with it.
Biotope characteristics
The electric eel lives in swampy areas, where there are many oxbows, ponds and lakes, which are gradually overgrown with vegetation and turn into swamps. In so muddy and dirty water the eel rests and hides.
Breath
An interesting development in the electric eel in the oral cavity of special areas of vascular tissue, which allows it to assimilate oxygen directly from the atmospheric air. To capture a new portion of air, the eel must rise to the surface of the water at least once every fifteen minutes, but usually it does this a little more often. If the fish is deprived of this opportunity, then it will die. The ability of an electric eel to use atmospheric oxygen for breathing allows it to be out of water for several hours, but only if its body and mouth remain moist. This feature provides an increased survival rate of acne in unfavorable conditions existence.
Electricity use
Electrical impulses are transmitted by nerve fibers to the neurons of the brain, this is how various signals are transmitted that the body perceives. Special electrical organs serve fish for orientation, defense, hunting and communication. Electrical discharges are capable of producing about 250 species of fish.
Electric organs are primarily used for orientation, as well as a hunting and protection tool. However, among all the representatives of the fauna, only two species of fish (eels and stingrays) produce a charge of such force that it can paralyze or even kill a person. The body of eels and rays is so powerful electricity that they are able to use it as a weapon.
Navigation
Like all electric fish, electric eels are capable of using weak electrical signals for navigation and social communication with other electric eels in the dark or in muddy water... For orientation, the fish uses a weak voltage (10 V), and the electric field extends over a radius of 5 meters.
Some of the electrical receptors are tuned to detect non-electrical fish, others are specialized to detect signals from congeners. The ability to detect electrical signals allows eels to even sense the heartbeats of other fish.
Hunting
For hunting, the eel uses a voltage of 300-600 V. The attack of an electric eel consists of 4-8 discharges, but they are short: they last only two to three thousandths of a second. Approaching the victim, the eel carries out an electric discharge, and the pursued fish, as well as all living creatures around, fall into a daze - the eel only has to choose the most suitable prey. Jaws wide open, he swallows fish, crabs and small animals one after another; while swallowing, he sniffs and makes a noise that can be heard from afar.
Interaction with other predators
Electric eel is a danger to everyone aquatic life... Turtles, frogs, lizards and even crocodiles prefer to cede their hunting grounds to him. However, sometimes young inexperienced caimans still decide to attack an electric eel and, as a rule, are defeated.
In culture
Notes (edit)
- Reshetnikov Yu.S., Kotlyar A.N., Rass T.S., Shatunovsky M.I. A five-language dictionary of animal names. Fishes. Latin, Russian, English, German, French. / under the general editorship of Acad. V.E.Sokolova. - M.: Rus. yaz., 1989. - P. 131. - 12,500 copies. - ISBN 5-200-00237-0.
And dangerous, lives in shallow muddy rivers the northeastern part of the South American continent. TO common eels it has nothing to do, being a hymn-like fish. Its main feature is the ability to generate electric charges of various strengths and purposes, as well as detect electric fields.
Habitat
Over the millennia of evolution, electric eels have adapted to survive in the extremely unfavorable conditions of overgrown and silted bodies of water. His habitual habitat is stagnant, warm and muddy fresh water with large deficit oxygen.
Eel breathes atmospheric air, therefore, every quarter of an hour or more, it rises to the surface of the water to capture a portion of air. If you deprive him of this opportunity, he suffocates. But without any harm, acne can do without water for several hours if its body and mouth are moisturized.
Description
The electric eel has an elongated body, slightly compressed from the sides and back, rounded in front. The color of adults is greenish brown. Throat and lower part of the flattened head - bright orange. Characteristic- lack of scales, the skin is covered with mucus.
The fish grows on average up to 1.5 m in length and weighs up to 20 kg, but there are also three-meter specimens. The absence of the pelvic and dorsal fin enhances the eel's similarity to a snake. It moves in undulating movements with the help of a large anal fin. It can equally easily move up and down, back and forth. Pectoral fins small in size when driving, they function as stabilizers.
Leads single image life. Most spends time at the bottom of the river, frozen among the thickets of algae. Eels are awake and hunt at night. They feed mainly on small fish, amphibians, crustaceans, and if you're lucky, birds and small animals. The victim is swallowed whole.
Unique feature
In fact, the ability to create electricity is not an extraordinary feature. Any living organism can do this to some extent. For example, our brains use electrical signals to control muscles. Eel produces electricity just like muscles and nerves in our body. Electrocyte cells store a charge of energy extracted from food. The synchronous generation of action potentials by them leads to the formation of short electrical discharges. As a result of the summation of thousands of tiny charges accumulated by each cell, a voltage of up to 650 V is created.
The eel emits electrical charges of various powers and purposes: impulses of protection, fishing, rest and search.
V calm state it lies on the bottom and does not generate any electrical signals. When hungry, it begins to swim slowly, emitting impulses with voltage up to 50 V with an approximate duration of 2 ms.
Having found prey, it sharply increases their frequency and amplitude: the intensity increases to 300-600 V, the duration is 0.6-2 ms. The pulse train consists of 50-400 discharges. Sent electrical discharges paralyze the victim. It uses high-frequency pulses to stun small fish, which the eel mainly feeds on. Pauses between discharges are used to restore energy.
When the immobilized victim sinks to the bottom, the eel calmly swims up to it and swallows it whole, and then rests for a while, digesting food.
Defending against enemies, the eel emits a series of rare high voltage pulses in the amount of 2 to 7, and 3 small amplitudes of the search ones.
Electrolocation
The electric organs of eels are not only for hunting and protection. They use weak discharges with a power of up to 10 V for electrolocation. The eyesight of these fish is weak, and with old age it worsens even more. They receive information about the world around them from electrical sensors located throughout the body. In the photo of an electric eel, its receptors are clearly visible.
An electric field pulsates around a floating eel. As soon as an object, such as a fish, plant, stone, is in the field of action, the shape of the field changes.
By capturing the distortions of the electric field created by it with special receptors, it finds its way and hiding prey in the muddy water. This hypersensitivity gives electric eel an advantage over other species of fish and animals that rely on sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste.
Electric organs of acne
The generation of discharges of various powers is carried out by the organs different types occupying almost 4/5 of the length of the fish. In the front part of its body there is a positive pole of the "battery", in the area of the tail - a negative one. The organs of Men and Hunter produce high voltage pulses. The discharges for communication and navigation functions are generated by the Sachs organ located in the tail. The distance at which individuals can communicate with each other is about 7 meters. To do this, they emit a series of discharges of a certain type.
The largest eels recorded in fish kept in aquariums reached 650 V. In fish of a meter length, it is no more than 350 V. This power is enough to light five light bulbs.
How acne protects against electric shock
The voltage generated during hunting by electric eels reaches 300-600 V. It is fatal for small inhabitants like crabs, fish and frogs. And large animals such as caimans, tapirs and adult anacondas prefer to stay away from dangerous places... Why don't electric eels shock themselves?
Vital important organs and heart) are located close to the head and are protected by fatty tissue, which acts as an insulator. Its skin has the same insulating properties. It has been noticed that damage to the skin increases the vulnerability of fish to electric shocks.
Another one is fixed interesting fact... During mating, eels generate very powerful discharges, but they do not cause damage to the partner. A discharge of such power produced in normal conditions, and not during the mating period, can kill another individual. This indicates that acne has the ability to turn the electric shock protection system on and off.
Reproduction
Eels spawn during the dry season. Males and females find each other by sending impulses in the water. The male builds a well-hidden nest from saliva, where the female lays up to 1700 eggs. Both parents take care of the offspring.
The skin of the fry is of a light ocher hue, sometimes with marble streaks. The first hatched fry begin to eat the rest of the eggs. They feed on small invertebrates.
The electrical organs in fry begin to develop after birth, when their body length reaches 4 cm. Small larvae are capable of generating an electric current of several tens of millivolts. If you pick up a fry, which is only a few days old, you can feel tingling sensations from electrical discharges.
Having grown up to 10-12 cm in length, juveniles begin to lead an independent way of life.
Electric eels do well in captivity. The life span of males is 10-15 years, females - up to 22. How long do they live in natural environment- not known for certain.
The aquarium for keeping these fish should be at least 3 m long and 1.5-2 m deep. It is not recommended to change the water in it often. This leads to the appearance of ulcers on the body of the fish and their death. The mucus covering the skin of acne contains an antibiotic that prevents ulcers, and frequent water changes appear to reduce its concentration.
In relation to representatives of its species, the eel, in the absence of sexual desire, shows aggression, therefore, only one individual can be kept in the aquarium. Water temperature is maintained at 25 degrees and above, hardness - 11-13 degrees, acidity - 7-8 pH.
Is acne dangerous for humans
Which electrical eel is especially dangerous to humans? It should be noted that a meeting with him is not fatal for a person, but it can lead to loss of consciousness. The electrical discharge from the eel leads to muscle contraction and painful numbness. The unpleasant sensation can last for several hours. In larger individuals, the current strength is greater, and the consequences of being hit by a discharge will be more deplorable.
This predatory fish attacks even a larger opponent without warning. If an object falls within the range of its electric field, it does not float away and does not hide, preferring to attack first. Therefore, in no case should you approach a meter-long eel closer than 3 meters.
Although fish is a delicacy, catching it is deadly. Locals invented original way catching electric eels. To do this, they use cows that tolerate electric shocks well. Fishermen drive a herd of animals into the water and wait for the cows to stop mooing and rushing about in fear. After that, they are driven out onto land, and they begin to catch harmless eels with nets. Electric eels cannot generate current indefinitely, and the discharges gradually become weaker and stop altogether.
This fish with the body of a snake is represented by the only species of the genus Electrophorus - electrophores, electrophore fish of the Gymnotidae family. Latin name Electrophorus electricus or Gymnotus electricus
This fish with the body of a snake is represented by the only species of the genus Electrophorus - electrophores, electrophore fish of the Gymnotidae family. Latin name Electrophorus electricus or Gymnotus electricus. Due to its physiological characteristics, it is the highest link in the biological chain, the top of the food pyramid - a predator that has no enemies in natural environment a habitat.
Electric eel habitat
The electric eel lives in the murky waters of South America, mainly in the Amazon and Orinoco rivers. Prefers to live in shallow, standing, but warm fresh waters with a great lack of oxygen. Since nature has endowed the electric eel with a unique vascular tissue in the mouth, it has to periodically rise to the surface of the water to take a breath of fresh air. But if an electric eel is out of water, it can live on land for several hours. Staying outdoors lasts 10 minutes or more, while no other fish species spends more than 30 seconds on the surface.
Electric eel (Electrophorus electricus). Photo by: Brian Gratwicke.
Appearance
Electric eel is a fairly large fish. Its average length is 2-2.5 meters, but there are also three-meter individuals. The weight of this fish is about 40 kg. The constitution is serpentine and slightly flattened from the sides, the head is flat. The electric eel can be safely called an animal, not a fish - due to the complete absence of scales. Instead, there is bare skin covered with mucus. The fins are also practically absent, except for the pectoral and caudal, but they are unusually developed - with their help, the electric eel easily moves in different directions. Nature has endowed this individual with a gray-brown camouflage color that allows the eel to go unnoticed while hunting for prey. However, the color of the head may differ from the general color, usually with an orange tint.
Unique feature
The very name of this fish speaks of its unique feature generate powerful electrical discharges. How does she do it? The fact is that the body of the eel is covered with special organs, consisting of special cells, which are sequentially connected by nerve channels. Starting from the very beginning, a weak discharge gains power towards the end, resulting in an unusually strong discharge that can kill not only small fish, but also a larger enemy. The average discharge power of an electric eel is 350W. For a person, it is not fatal, but it may well deafen to the point of loss of consciousness. Therefore, to avoid unnecessary risk, it is better to stay away from the electric eel and not come close.
The head of an electric fish is orange. Photo by: Arjan Haverkamp.
Prey hunt
The electric eel attacks without warning and does not give in even to large prey. If any living creatures appear next to the eel, it immediately shudders with the whole body, forming a discharge of 300-350 V, from which all potential prey nearby, mainly small fish, instantly perishes. After waiting for the paralyzed fish to sink to the bottom, the eel calmly swims up to it and swallows it whole, after which it rests for several minutes, digesting food.
It is almost impossible to catch an electric eel with a fishing rod; this trick has a bad effect on him, since he does not have good eyesight. This specimen came across by accident. After photographing, he was released home, back into the water. Photo by: Seig.
Reproduction of electro acne
In fact, the hero of our story has been extremely poorly studied. Biologists still cannot tell us with absolute certainty about the full life cycle this fish. It is known that hymnnotus at a certain time of the year leaves for inaccessible places and returns with grown-up offspring, offspring already possessing the ability to "synthesize" an electric charge. Other sources say that for reproduction, the male electric eel creates a nest from his own saliva, after which the female lays eggs in it. From one clutch of eggs, up to 17,000 small electric eels are born. Acne, born first, often eat eggs from a fresh clutch.
With the onset of darkness, the electric eel goes hunting. Photo by: Travis.
How does fertilization take place? Where are the intermediate stages of development delayed / born? How the juveniles grow and develop ... has not yet been described by science. Only one more insignificant fact has been declared - a hymnnotus fry that has reached ten to twelve centimeters in length is considered an adult full-fledged individual.
Electric eel - schematic (clickable picture).
Electric eel - interesting facts
- Electric eel has nothing to do with common eel. It belongs to the class of ray-finned fish (Actinopterygii).
- Individuals of the electric eel have very poor eyesight, there is scientific opinion that with age the fish's eyes generally cease to see. And they are awake and hunt, mainly at night.
- Electric eels are carnivorous. They feed not only on small fish, but also on birds, amphibians, crustaceans, and even small mammals.
- Gymnotus has short teeth, he does not chew food, but swallows almost entirely.
- With the help of an electric discharge, eels communicate with each other.
- The electric eel has a low-frequency wave locator, with which it receives information about nearby obstacles or prey.
- If you pick up a young electric eel, you may feel a slight tingling sensation.
- The electric eel is ahead of even the predatory piranha in terms of the number of victims.
- For the first time, an electric eel is mentioned in the historical annals of the 17th century, as unusual creature inhabiting the Antilles Sea. Almost a century later, the fish was described by the famous scientist Alexander von Humboldt.
Keeping an electric eel in an aquarium
For the hymnnotus, it is necessary to provide for a large aquarium, very large, given the size of the fish, it must have at least one of the walls a length of at least 3 meters. It is also important to take into account the depth of the reservoir, the electric one constantly rises to the surface, after which it again sinks into the lower layers, in this regard, it is better to foresee the depth of the reservoir with water at least 1.5-2 meters.
Electric Eel - fragment aquarium life... Photo by patries71.
In one aquarium, it will be possible to contain only one individual, since during the period when the fish do not have sexual interest in each other, even heterosexual individuals can be aggressive towards the roommate. Also, in view of its special electrical properties, there are few other species of freshwater fauna that can live with an electric eel in close proximity. Eel is the owner of very poor eyesight, to move around aquatic environment uses electric navigation - emits weak electrical discharges (10-15 V), when a biological object (potential victim) is detected, the force of the discharge increases.
This electric eel clearly demonstrates how important the size (length) of the aquarium is for it. Photo by Scott Hanko.
Electric eel aquarium does not require aeration. The water temperature should be at least 25 degrees Celsius, hardness - 11-13 degrees, acidity (pH) in the range of 7-8. Oddly enough, Gymnotus does not like frequent water changes, there are suggestions that the fish itself creates a microclimate in which antimicrobial substances accumulate that prevent the appearance of diseases. Otherwise, electric eel has ulcers on the surface of the skin.
Loves a sandy substrate, a small amount of pebble is allowed; the presence of a moderate amount of vegetation is welcomed, also likes a rich bottom landscape - stones, caves, driftwood.
Talk about electric fish. How much current do they generate?
Electric catfish.
Electric eel.
Electric Stingray.
V. Kumushkin (Petrozavodsk).
Among electric fish, the dominance belongs to the electric eel, which lives in tributaries of the Amazon and other rivers in South America. Adult eels reach two and a half meters. The electrical organs - the transformed muscles - are located on the sides of the eel, extending along the spine for 80 percent of the entire length of the fish. This is a kind of battery, the plus of which is in the front of the body, and the minus in the back. A living battery generates a voltage of about 350, and in the largest individuals - up to 650 volts. With an instantaneous current strength of up to 1-2 amperes, such a discharge is capable of knocking a person off his feet. With the help of electrical discharges, the eel defends itself from enemies and gets food for itself.
In the rivers Equatorial Africa there is another fish - electric catfish. Its dimensions are smaller - from 60 to 100 cm. Special glands that generate electricity make up about 25 percent of the total weight of the fish. Electricity reaches a voltage of 360 volts. There are known cases of electric shock in people bathing in the river and accidentally stepping on such a catfish. If an electric catfish falls on a fishing rod, then the angler can receive a very noticeable electric shock, which has passed along the wet fishing line and the rod to his hand.
However, skillfully directed electrical discharges can be used in medicinal purposes... It is known that the electric catfish occupied an honorable place in the arsenal. traditional medicine among the ancient Egyptians.
They are capable of generating very significant electrical energy and electric ramps... There are more than 30 types of them. These sedentary bottom dwellers, ranging in size from 15 to 180 cm, are distributed mainly in coastal zone tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Hidden at the bottom, sometimes half immersed in sand or silt, they paralyze their prey (other fish) with a discharge of current, the voltage of which is different types stingrays are from 8 to 220 volts. A stingray can also inflict a significant electric shock on a person who accidentally comes into contact with it.
In addition to electric charges fish of great strength are capable of producing a low-voltage, weak current. Thanks to the rhythmic discharges of a weak current with a frequency of 1 to 2000 pulses per second, they are perfectly oriented even in muddy water and signal to each other about the emerging danger. Such are the mormiruses and gymnarchs who live in the murky waters of rivers, lakes and swamps in Africa.
In general, as experimental studies have shown, almost all fish, both marine and freshwater, are capable of emitting very weak electrical discharges, which can be captured only with the help of special devices. These discharges play important role in the behavioral reactions of fish, especially those that constantly keep in large schools.
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