FISHES THAT FORGE THUNDER BOLTS.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 2651, 30 October 1906, Page 7

FISHES THAT FORGE THUNDER BOLTS.

There are several species of fish which make and use electricity ; the torpedo-ray, for instance, the electric cat-fish, and a little chap not more than a foot hum, known as the "star gazer," from his habit of spending most of his time in the muddy beds of rivers with only his eyes exposed, waiting for something edible to come along, so that tie may shock it to death unawares. By far the most powerful of all animals so equipped, however, is the electric eel. which is a Ihing storagebattery, It reaches a. length of Bft. and a weight of 501h>s. or more, its thickness being equal to that of a man's thigh. In its tail, which comprises four-fifths of its length, are two huge masses of elongated form, which are composed of prism-like (ells tilled with a jelly-like substance, these cells of which there are two hundred and forty to the inch, are nothing more nor less than miniature Leydcn jars, the masses described, which are separated from each other by a thin partition running lengthwise, being extrcmch efficient batteries. To make the equipment more complete, tin 1 has a pair of auxiliary batteries along each side of the base of the anal I'm. The whole apparatus is connected with the central nervous system of the animal, which is thereby enabled to discharge its thunderbolts at will.