Umair Gaines
Electric eels are like living batteries, with the power to deliver electric shocks of up to 600 volts. They use this ability to navigate, hunt, and defend themselves. While it is rare for people to be killed by electric eels, the shock can be powerful enough to incapacitate or even kill a human. Ken Catania, a neurobiologist at Vanderbilt University, compared the sensation of being shocked by an electric eel to accidentally backing into an electric fence.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Electric eel's shock | Like an electric-fence sensation |
| Electric eel's voltage | 500 to 600 volts |
| Electric eel's current | 50 milliamps |
| Electric eel's size | 5 feet or longer |
| Electric eel's weight | 44 pounds |
| Electric eel's length | 8 feet |
| Electric eel's power | 250 mA |
| Electric eel's special organs | Main organ, Hunter's organ, and Sach's organ |
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What You'll Learn
- Electric eels can deliver a powerful electric shock of up to 600 volts
- They can leap out of the water to intensify the shock
- They use electricity to navigate, hunt and communicate
- Electric eels are like living batteries, with positive and negative sides
- It is rare for people to be killed by electric eels
Electric eels can deliver a powerful electric shock of up to 600 volts
Electric eels are like living batteries, with stacks of modified muscle cells called electrocytes that have both a positive and a negative side. These electrocytes make up three special organs—the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ—that take up about 80% of the eel's body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths. These organs enable electric eels to deliver powerful electric shocks of up to 600 volts.
The electric shocks from these eels can be used for various purposes, including navigation, hunting, and self-defence. When hunting, they emit high-frequency shocks of around 500 to 600 volts, overwhelming their prey's nervous system and locking up their muscles. Interestingly, they can also leap out of the water to increase the power of their jolt, pressing themselves against a predator to create a closed electrical circuit and intensifying the shock.
The intensity of the shock from an electric eel can depend on its size and the distance it jumps out of the water. Larger eels can produce more powerful shocks, and the higher they leap out of the water, the more electric current passes through the victim. While it is rare for people to be killed by electric eels, the shock can be strong enough to incapacitate or even potentially kill a human, especially with multiple shocks.
The sensation of being shocked by an electric eel has been described by scientists as similar to accidentally backing into an electric fence, delivering a powerful jolt. The electric current from a relatively small 15-inch eel has been measured at 40 to 50 milliamps, which is well above the threshold of 5 to 10 milliamps that humans can sense and reflexively recoil from.
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They can leap out of the water to intensify the shock
Electric eels are like living batteries, with stacks of modified muscle cells called electrocytes that have both a positive and a negative side. When the cells are triggered, they discharge an electrical impulse. They have three special organs—the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ—that take up about 80% of their body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths.
Electric eels can leap out of the water and intensify their shock by pressing themselves against a predator. They can attach the most positively charged part of their body, their chin, to the predator, while keeping their negative pole in the water. This creates a powerful closed electrical circuit, preventing the electrical charge from dispersing into the water and intensifying the shock.
The higher an electric eel jumps out of the water, the more electric current passes through the victim instead of back into the water. This behaviour may have evolved as a defence mechanism against predators, such as crocodiles or large cats, that could attack during dry seasons when eels are stuck in shallow pools of water.
While it is rare for people to be killed by electric eels, they can produce a lethal 600 volts of electrical energy, enough to incapacitate or kill a human, especially with multiple shocks. The shock of an electric eel has been described as an "electric-fence sensation" by a scientist who voluntarily subjected himself to the experience.
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They use electricity to navigate, hunt and communicate
Electric eels are like living batteries. They have stacks of modified muscle cells called electrocytes that have both a positive and a negative side. When the cells are triggered, they discharge an electrical impulse. Electric eels have three special organs that help them create electricity: the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ. These organs take up about 80% of the eel's body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths, which perform different functions.
Electric eels use electricity to navigate, hunt and communicate. They emit a constant electric charge of about 10 volts, which acts as a radar to help them find their way in muddy waters. They also use the electric charge to identify prey. This is known as electrolocation, which is common in around 1–2% of fishes. Electric eels can also use electricity to stun their prey, even when they are not touching them. They can send out high-frequency shocks of about 500 to 600 volts, overwhelming their prey's nervous system and locking up all of their muscles.
Electric eels can also use electricity to defend themselves against predators. They are able to leap partially out of the water and press themselves against a predator, creating a powerful closed electrical circuit. This prevents the electrical charge from dispersing into the water and instead dumps all the electricity into the predator. The higher the eel rears out of the water, the more electric current passes through the victim.
The experience of being shocked by an electric eel has been likened to accidentally backing into an electric fence on a farm. It has been described as a very unpleasant sensation, with humans being able to sense and reflexively recoil from charges as low as 5 to 10 milliamps.
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Electric eels are like living batteries, with positive and negative sides
Electric eels have three special organs that help them create electricity: the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ. These organs take up about 80% of the eel's body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths, which perform different functions. For example, they use weaker electric impulses to navigate, hunt, and communicate.
The electric eel, or *Electrophorus electricus*, is a fish classified in the order Gymnotiformes and is a cousin to the carp and catfish. They can grow up to 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and weigh up to 44 pounds (20 kilograms). They get their name from their ability to generate powerful electric shocks of up to 600 volts, which they use for hunting, defence, and navigation.
While electric eels are not typically aggressive, they will attack if they feel cornered. They are also known to leap out of the water to increase the power of their jolt, pressing themselves against a predator to create a closed electrical circuit. This behaviour may have evolved as a defence mechanism against predators like crocodiles or large cats that attempt to attack during dry seasons when water levels are low.
The experience of being shocked by an electric eel has been described by scientists as similar to accidentally backing into an electric fence, delivering a powerful jolt that can be felt through the entire body. Despite their name, electric eels are not true eels but are more closely related to knifefishes, catfishes, and carp.
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It is rare for people to be killed by electric eels
Electric eels are not typically aggressive and will only attack when they feel cornered or threatened. It is rare for people to be killed by them. However, they can produce a lethal 600 volts of electrical energy, which is enough to kill a human or leave them incapacitated for years. The shock can also cause serious injury and death due to drowning or heart failure.
Electric eels have three organs that help them create electricity: the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ. These organs take up about 80% of the eel's body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths for various functions. They use weaker electric impulses to navigate, hunt, and communicate. They can also leap out of the water to increase the power of their jolt and deliver a more powerful shock to a predator.
The sensation of being shocked by an electric eel has been described as similar to accidentally backing into an electric fence. The voltage of the shock can vary depending on the size of the eel and how far it jumps out of the water. For context, humans can sense and reflexively recoil from charges as low as 5 to 10 milliamps. A small, 15-inch electric eel can deliver an electrical current of 40 to 50 milliamps, while the largest eels can produce up to 250 milliamps, or roughly 8.5 times the shock of a TASER.
While it is rare, there have been documented instances of people being killed by electric eels. One such instance involved a Brazilian man who went fishing in the Amazon and accidentally caught an electric eel. When he returned with a knife, another predator was sizing up the catch. It is unclear what became of the man, but the incident was captured on shocking video footage that went viral.
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Frequently asked questions
According to Ken Catania of Vanderbilt University, being shocked by an electric eel feels like an "electric-fence sensation". He let a small eel zap his arm to measure the strength of the electric current.
An adult electric eel can produce a lethal 600 volts of electrical energy, enough to kill a human or leave them incapacitated for years.
Electric eels have three special organs that help them create electricity: the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ. These organs take up about 80% of the eel's body and allow them to produce electric impulses of different strengths.
Electric eels use electricity to navigate, hunt, and defend themselves. They emit a low voltage for navigation and high-voltage bursts for hunting or defense.
While it is rare, there have been documented instances of electric eel shocks causing serious injury or death, primarily due to drowning or heart failure induced by the shock. Therefore, electric eels can be dangerous and should be avoided if possible.
