Accidentally proved the 200-year-old horror theory of electric eel

The legendary eel's predatory way has proven to be true.

Along rivers in South America - especially the Amazon River, there is an extremely terrifying predator. It is not as terrible as a crocodile, it is not fast and possesses sharp jaws like piranhas, but its weapons are terrifying for most creatures on this Earth. That is Electricity.

Yes! The killer we mentioned here is the electric eel - also known as electric eel . They stand out with the ability to shock enemies. Each time they attack, they release a series of 10-30 electric pulses with a voltage of up to 500V, even 1,000V to the surrounding water.

This eel's attack method is very controversial for the scientific community.

This electrical impulse is capable of paralyzing, or killing, their prey. Even humans who are constantly involved in the electrical impulse of this eel can die, even though the deaths are relatively rare.

However, this eel's attack method is very controversial for the scientific community, starting with a theory initiated by Alexander von Humboldt - a Prussian scientist in 1800.

First, no one doubts that electric eels can discharge electricity into the surrounding water. But on an expedition to Amazon in 1800, Humboldt said, he saw firsthand the electric eels rushing to the surface, attacking a herd of horses.

This has not been recorded until that point. For years to come, people have never seen eels attack when near shore. Moreover, the eel can completely evade instead of tons of sewage.

Therefore, many people thought that Humboldt said too much of what he saw, and the way the eel's attack was just . fairy tales no more and nothing more.

The painting was drawn by an acquaintance of Humboldt in 1843 to describe this phenomenon.

Recently, however, Professor Kenneth Catania of Vanderbilt University (USA) discovered that electric eel attack was real. And he knew this by accident, when he was moving a room for an eel in the lab.

Using an iron net to catch the eel, he realized after a while of avoiding it, the eel suddenly stopped, protruding onto the water, pressed its chin into the net and then "emitted a series of electrical impulses with extreme voltage high".

Realizing this phenomenon, he decided to do another experiment, using a crocodile head with LED bulbs under his skin. When dipped in water, the eel suddenly launched, pressing its chin and discharging electricity.

The eel attacked the crocodile head, releasing an electric pulse that illuminated the lamp.

Professor Catania said that when encountering an enemy of a larger size, it would be the way the eel species attacked . By ejecting people out of the water, electric eels can directly transmit electricity to their prey with maximum destructive power. Moreover, the area suffered from electric shock was also wider than usual, due to the larger contact area.

By ejecting people out of the water, electric eels directly transmit electricity to their prey.

According to Catania, eel behavior is probably the result of evolution . By approaching the prey, the eel's ability to shock will become more efficient, while increasing the rate of paralysis or death of the prey.

How does electric eel discharge?

Inside the electric eel has 3 strange bodies, accounting for 80% of the body. These 3 bodies are like electrodes, responsible for charge and release.

To sense the surroundings, the electric eel emits low electrical impulses like using a radar to scan. And when defending and catching prey, this fish will release a high-voltage electrical impulse towards the target with an electric current that can be as strong as 1,000V.