CURIOUS FACTS CONTEST- ELECTRIC EEL

While I was younger, I read and heard about electric fish. All I knew was: they are the only aquatic animal that has natural electric body. Recent years, my intense research has give sure answer to my curiosity about the unique creature. I will like to share the facts you need to know about the electric eel.

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Electric eels are aquatic animal. It's generally know as electric fish. They are the most popular of about 500 types of fish that are capable of producing electricity. Electric eels lives in shallow, muddy areas of Amazon and Orinoco rivers in South America.

It has three abdominal organs that produce electricity. they are: the main organ, the Hunter's organ, and the Sach's organ. The organs make up four-fifths of its entire body, and gives electric eel the ability to generate two types of electric organ discharges : low and high voltage. These organs are made of electrocytes , lined up so that current of ions can flow through them.

When the eel sight its prey, the brain sends a signal through the nervous system to the electrocytes. It quickly open the ion channels, allowing sodium to flow through, reversing the polarity momentarily. It generates an electric current in a way similar to a battery, in which stacked plates each produce an electric potential difference.

Feeding

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Generally, they feed on invertebrates, the adult eels can aldo consume fish and small animal like rats. New born eels eat other eggs and embryos. The young ones eat invertebrates like shrimp and crabs.

Reproduction

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The electric eel exhibit unusual breeding Life style. In the dry season, a male eel makes a nest from his saliva for the female to lay her eggs. It can hatch up to 3,000 young eels from hatch in one nest. Obviously, the Male electric eels are much smaller than the females.

That's enough to know about the electric eel. Let me now give attention to your curiosity with the facts I gathered below:

ELECTRIC EEL CURIOUS FACTS

1. Electric eels live in shallow, muddy water and often come to the water surface every 10 minutes because they breathe atmospheric air.

2. Electric eels can grow to 8 feet length and weigh up to 44 pounds.

3. Their cylindrical body could be white, black, blue, purple or grey in color.

4. They are aquatic carnivores. They can feed on fish, amphibians, birds and small mammals.

5. *They live on their own(solitary animals).Group of eels is called swarm.

6. Electricity organs of their body takes 80% of their body.*

7. Electric eel has 6000 cells called electrocyte: producer of electricity.

8. They can generate a power of 600 volts.

9. It electric shock can knock down a horse.

10. Man can die when hit with eels consecutive electric shocks.*

11. 20 foot long eel can produce electricity to light 12 light bulbs.

12. • They have poor eyesight.
      they generate electric charge up to 10 volts to illuminate their surrounding and engulf prey.*

13. Mating is happens during dry season.

14. They can live up to 15 years in their natural habitat and up to 22 years in captivity.

15. Electric eel can swim backward.

Thanks for reading @updanny

Big thanks to @river-island