Volta's Electric Eel

Electrophorus voltai, named after Italian physicist and inventor of the electric battery Alessandro Volta. From the first genus name Electrophorus was “electric bring” in Greek. Despite the name, it is not an eel, but rather a knifefish. It is considered as a fresh water teleost which contains an electrogenic tissue that produces electric discharges. Thus far from these ancestors, this species of electric eels are higher than normal Electrophorus electricus or Electrophorus varii, at 860 V per power.

It closely resembles E. electricus but differs in skull morphology, including having a depressed skull and a wide head. E. voltai’s body was slim, scaleless, elongated, cylindrical body, typically growing to about 2 m. Their coloration is light gray-brown on the back and yellow or orange on the belly and spots.

 It has a maximum voltage of 860 volts, making it not only the strongest bioelectricity generator of the three electric eel species, but also of any animal. If you put an electric current through their hearts, they'll pass away instantly. Therefore, they must proceed with extreme caution. However, accidents do still occur. By bending their bodies in a way that prevents the electric current from passing through their hearts, they reduce the risk to themselves.

A 2021 study reported the first known occurrence of pack hunting by electric eels in a population of E. voltai at the mouth of the Iriri River in Brazil. The majority of their diet consists of fish. They are nocturnal, air-breathing, electrolocating animals with poor vision. The spinal column of electric eels continues to grow as long as they live. Compared to females, males are bigger. The lifespan of some captive species exceeds 20 years.

Normally peaceful creatures, electric eels have the potential to become the Amazon's bullies. The eel employs shock to deceive prey and thwart predators.

It inhabits upland habitats, primarily north-flowing rivers of the Brazilian Shield, but also some south-flowing rivers of the Guiana Shield. The Electric Eel is a nocturnal benthopelagic species that typically lives in the muddy bottoms of rivers, streams, pools, and swamps. It prefers areas that are heavily shaded. Benthopelagic means "not near the bottom" or "in the lowest level of a water body." Due to its obligate need for air, this species can survive in water with low oxygen levels. Adults consume fish and small mammals, whereas juveniles consume invertebrates.

• Movement Pattern: Nomadic

• Individual Type: Solo

• Population Trend: Stable

• Population: ???

• Locomotion: Amphibious

• Habitat: Warm River; Cold River; Lukewarm River; Warm Pond; Cold Pond; Warm Lake; Cold Lake.

• Earth: 

  • Extant (Resident): Brazil; Colombia; Guiana; Suriname; Venezuela

Electric eels are fairly hardy in the aquarium, but due to their enormous adult size and potentially lethal shock, they should only be kept by seasoned hobbyists with a large, dedicated aquarium built specifically to meet this fish's unique needs. Larger fish should be handled very carefully.

Within the group of Gymnotiformes, which includes South American knifefishes, electric eels are a clade of highly electrified fishes. The true eels (Anguilliformes), by contrast, are not closely related to electric eels. It is believed that sometime during the Cretaceous, the lineage of the Electrophorus genus diverged from its sister taxon Gymnotus. The majority of knifefishes have a weak electric field and can deliver active electrolocation but not shocks. By sequencing their mitochondrial DNA in 2019, their relationships, as depicted in the cladogram, were examined.

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• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrophorus_voltai

• https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/eels.html

• https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/04/03/how-do-eels-generate-electricity-in-water-without-electrocuting-themselves/#:~:text=An%20electric%20current%20through%20their,from%20passing%20through%20their%20heart.

• https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/electric-eel#:~:text=Although%20electric%20eels%20have%20the,waters%2C%20and%20have%20poor%20eyesight.

• https://www.aqua-imports.com/product/electric-eel-electrophorus-electricus/#:~:text=In%20the%20aquarium%2C%20electric%20eels,be%20treated%20with%20extreme%20caution.

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Electrophorus-voltai-874073693