Electric fish

Figure 1. Types and distribution of electric fish. Species of electric fish can be found in freshwater rivers of Africa and South America, as well as marine environments. Marine species are depicted in blue, freshwater species in yellow. Strongly electric fish use electricity to stun their prey, while weakly electric fish use electricity for sensing and communication. The waveform above each fish represents the time course of the electric organ discharge that would be recorded in the water near the fish. (Modified from Moller, P. (1995). Electric Fishes: History and Behavior (London: Chapman and Hall). With kind permission from Electric fish