From its ability to produce electricity to a number of people who’ve suffered its powerful
shock, this is what happens when electric eels attack.
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Number 5 Kenneth Catania About two hundred years ago, Prussian explorer
Alexander von Humboldt went to South America.
He wanted to capture electric eels so his party used horses to corner them in the water.
In his subsequent notes, von Humboldt wrote that the eels leapt out of the water to shock
the horses and that some of the animals died in process.
Biologists who came across his observation believed it to be a myth.
Then, biologist Kenneth Catania, a researcher at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee
made a remarkable discovery.
In 2016 he confirmed, what von Humboldt had noted centuries prior, that electric eels
are indeed capable of leaping attacks.
In his research Catania also subjected himself to being shocked by an electric eel.
The experiment was carried out in a specialized tank and the eel reared out of the water and
attacked his arm.
He described the shock as an effective deterrent and measured the current flowing through his
arm at 40 to 50 milliamps.
Catania used a small eel in the experiment but calculated that larger creatures might
deliver up to 250 milliamps.
In our next listing we take a look at how electric eels can remotely control their prey,
but before we get to that let’s explore the physiology of these fascinating creatures.
Electrophorus electricus, commonly known as the electric eel, is a South American fish
with a cylindrical, elongated body that can grow up to 8 feet long.
Three pairs of abdominal organs, which account for most of its mass, are responsible for
the eel’s ability to produce electricity.
These organs are made up of thousands of muscle-like cells called electrocytes.
They’re lined up in such a way that ion current can flow through them and stacked
so that each can activate the other, contributing to a potential difference.
It’s similar to the way batteries work inside a flashlight.
The eel’s brain will send a signal through its nervous system to the electrocytes causing
the ion channels to open up.
It’s the sudden difference in electric potential that produces electric current and the entire
process takes a few milliseconds.
The electric eel can generate both low voltage and high voltage electric discharges but it’s
not fully understood how it doesn’t shock itself.
Favored theories have to do with built-up resistance and that the organs work in a circuit
that keeps the eel internally safe.
Before we continue with our list, answer this question.
Even though it’s commonly referred to as an “eel”, Electrophorus electricus is
actually a type of… a.
Sea snake b.
Stingray c.
Knifefish d.
Catfish Let us know what you think in the comments
section below and stay tuned to find out the right answer.
Number 4 Remote Control of Prey As previously mentioned, eels generate both
low and high voltage discharges.
The former is used as radar for locating prey in the water.
They can also use electrical current to manipulate a victim’s nervous system and muscles.
The manner in which they basically remote control their prey is by sending pairs of
high voltage pulses in the water.
They emit these doublets in areas where they can’t find the exact location of potential
meals.
The pulses will cause massive twitches in their prey and may remotely activate all the
muscles in its body at once, thus making it reveal its location.
The electric eel senses the twitch and will emit a string of high voltage pulses to stun
or incapacitate its victim.
Up next, a Brazilian fisherman uses himself as bait to catch an electric eel but first
let’s see where we can find these creatures.
Electric eels are freshwater fish found in South America, in the basins of the Amazon
and Orinoco rivers.
They typically inhabit the murky bottoms of calm or stagnant waters in creeks, floodplains,
swamps or coastal plains.
Electric eels are predators that will use their infamous shocks to take out fish, amphibians
or small mammals, such as rats.
They’re also known to display a rather odd breeding behavior.
During the dry season, the female will lay its eggs in a nest that the male has made
from his saliva.
Another little-known aspect about electric eels is that they’re mouth breathers.
Their vascularized respiratory system requires oxygen.
Every ten minutes or so, the eel will rise to the surface for a breath of air, before
returning to the bottom.
Number 3 Brazilian Fisherman A clip that has generated a lot of attention
online shows a Brazilian fisherman using his own body as bait to capture an electric eel.
He nervously enters a mud pool with a rope wrapped around his body.
An electric eel then shocks the man who begins to shout at his friends.
They then start dragging him out of the water with the electric eel still attached to his
body.
Coming up next, a caiman gets dealt with and we learn more about a fascinating electric
eel attack tactic.
But first, let’s find out how this creature can kill you.
Attacks on humans are rare and typically represent a form of defensive behavior.
The shock of an electric eel is enough to stun or deter basically any animal.
Electrophorus electricus can generate up to 660 volts of current throughout its body that’s
transferred to its victim.
The attack has been compared to being shot by a stun gun.
Unless you’re suffering from a severe heart condition, it’s unlikely that the shock
itself will kill you.
It would likely take prolonged exposure and repeated discharges from multiple eels to
kill someone with electricity alone.
That being said, the jolt from a single electric eel may incapacitate the person long enough
for them to drown.
For humans, that’s where the true dangers of electric eels lie since the voltage can
be felt for some distance from the creature itself.
Number 2 Coiling Behavior A viral YouTube clip, which has over 14 million
hits, shows what happens when a caiman attacks an electric eel.
A Brazilian fisherman had caught the eel and was pulling it out of the water, when the
crocodile leapt ashore.
Moments after the reptile had sunken its teeth in, the electric eel delivered a full force
shock.
In the video the caiman start stiffening up before going limp.
Subsequent reports claimed that both animals died in the exchange.
Research has revealed that the electric eel can bend its body to increase the intensity
of the shock it delivers.
By curling its body into a U shape, the eel aligns the positive and negative poles of
its electric field.
It employs this technique when it hunts as well.
The eel will typically give out an initial shock to stun its prey.
It will then seize the victim and sandwich it between its head and its body.
Measurements indicate that through a curling attack an eel can more than double its electrical
output.
Before we move on to what’s literally the most shocking creature in the animal kingdom,
let’s go over how you can survive an electric eel attack.
As it’s usually the case with dangerous animals, your best bet is avoiding these creatures
all-together.
Refrain from swimming or even fishing in water known for the presence of electric eels.
If you’ve been shocked and have trouble breathing or regaining your composure, contact
a medical professional immediately.
If someone you know is attacked, do not approach them or touch their body while they’re still
in contact with the eel.
Handling this creature should only be done using materials that aren’t electrically
conductive.
You should make sure the eel is gone before attempting to pull the shock victim out of
the water.
Call for help and, if needed, perform CPR on them until emergency services arrive on
the scene.
So, what is Electrophorus electricus if not an actual eel?
The right answer was c, a type of knifefish.
These creatures belong to the Gymnotiformes order and get their common name from being
shaped like a knife.
Electrophorus electricus is the largest member of the order.
Knifefish are mainly nocturnal and, while many can generate electric fields for navigation,
the electric eel also uses this ability for attack and defense.
Number 1 Electrophorus voltai As recently as September 2019, the general
assumption was that a single electric eel species existed in nature and that its name
is Electrophorus electricus.
However, after years of exploring the Amazon Rainforest, researcher Carlos David de Santana
argues that two more species can be added to the list.
These are the proposed Electrophorus varii and Electrophorus voltai.
There are some morphological distinctions and DNA differences between them but that’s
not the most intriguing part.
According to de Santana’s research, Electrophorus voltai is the world’s most powerful eel.
Named after Alessandro Volta, the inventor of the battery, its discharge tops out at
860 volts.
This exceeds the previously-thought limit of 650.
The new findings would make it the planet’s most electric animal and the strongest bioelectricity
generator known to man.
The research team also discovered that electric eels aren’t exclusively solitary animals,
as previously thought, and may even cooperate to take down prey.
Thanks for watching!
Would you rather dive in electric eel-infested waters OR jump out of a moving car?
Let us know in the comments section below!