Malapterurus electricus
(Gmelin, 1789)
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his is certainly a catfish for the experienced catfish keeper
as it is like no other, and when adult the electric organ is capable
of generating 300-400 volts, enough to stun a full grown adult
of Homo sapian!. When they are bought, usually as small
juveniles, their electrical output is more of a tingle.
It uses its electrical charge for catching prey and defense. It
has a negative charge at the head and positive at the tail and
consists of greatly modified body muscle fibres. This appears
as a thin jelly like sleeve directly under the skin. It has been
noted that the species that reside in Lake Tanganyika do not have
as large a potential electrical current probably due to the more
alkaline conditions that exist there.
In the not too distant past there used to be only three species
in this genus, M.electricus from the Zaire system to
west Africa and the Nile, M.microstoma from the Congo
basin and M.minjiriya from Lake Kainji, Nigeria. After
the work carried out by Roberts in 2000 there are now reputedly
16 species now in existence.
Along with the "Electric Catfish's" there are only
another two species that have the capability of electric shock,
The "Electric Eel", Electrophorus electricus
and the "Electric Ray", Torpedo marmorata.
This is an old world catfish and
it is reputed that Doctors in ancient Egypt used shocks from
the Electric Catfish to reduce the pain of arthritis. This trait
is still used today in some areas. It also has the earliest
reference of them as hieroglyphics on the walls of ancient Egyptian
tombs dating back some 5000 years.
Adults can become quite tame for their owners and can be fed
from hand. The best aquarium conditions for them would be a
planted tank as big as you can afford, anything over a 4ft long
tank with it being wide enough to let it turn its body without
any strain, 24ins being a good guide. Height is not that important
but again 24ins for a guide. Sand or smooth gravel for the substrate
and also caves, as they like to hide away during the day and
a set-up such as this will mean that you may be see it poking
its head out of its cave as they do in their natural environment.
Another important point is to position the heater so as not
to cause the "Electric Catfish" any damage to its
naked body., as they do have an aversion to laying against heaters.
A better bet would be to cover over the heater with a heater
guard or invest in the type of external filter that has a space
for a heater in its make-up.
Filtration would be an external power filter and subdued lighting
would be an advantage as they do not like their surroundings
to be too bright. With that set-up you can enjoy your pet for
many years.
A note about removing your "Electric Cat" from the
aquarium for any reason. Do not startle it, if you do not feed
for a couple of days before and then just move your cat around
the tank with a gentle push from a plastic handled fish net,
it will then discharge itself with a large charge then a few
smaller ones. You can then gently lift it out of the tank with
the help of heavy weight rubber gloves for added protection,
but sometimes they will be passive anyway, but why take the
risk!.
Anal-9. No rayed dorsal fin, adipose fin short, pectorals without
spines, caudal rounded. Head and body rounded and fleshy, mouth
terminal, teeth fine, in broad bands on both jaws, 3 pairs barbels,
outer mandibulars longest, reaching base of pectorals, gill slits
short, restricted to sides.
Body grey to to brown above with a white underside. Numerous black
spots and blotches along the body, denser on posterior half. Caudal
fin dark at base margined with orange or red, anal fin similarly
coloured. Ventral and pectoral fins yellowish to red. Young specimens
differ from adults - the body being flesh coloured with very few
black spots and having a light ring around the caudal peduncle and
a vertical black bar at the base of the caudal fin.
Not to be trusted when adult so will need to be kept on its own.
Juveniles can be kept together but would need to be monitered
when growing.
In their natural habitat they form pairs and
lay their eggs in excavated cavities or holes. Would not be possible
in the small confines of an Aquarium. There have been rumours that
they are mouth brooders, but this needs to be confirmed.
| Sexual
differences |
The males tend to be more slender than the females.
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| Feeding |
In their natural habitat they feed on fishes that are stunned by
their electrical charges so adults would need to be fed live fish.
If bought as juveniles you may be able to wean them on to worm food
such as garden worms, frozen bloodworm, shrimp, krill and small
pieces of fish or meat. The urge to overfeed must be avoided as
they can get quite gluttonous. They could also be trained to take
tablet food. It is a matter of trial and error in different individuals.
| Glossary
of Terms |
Mandibular Pertaining
to the lower jaw. (mandibular barbels)
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| Etymology |
Malapterurus
= Mala = soft; pter = fin;
urus = tail. (Refers to the adipose fin)
electricus
= Electrical.
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| References |
Skelton, Paul;
A complete Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa.
Southern Book Publishers. p 238-239
Roberts, T. R.; (2000). A review of the African
electric catfish family Malapteruridae: with descriptions
of new species. United States: T.R. Roberts.
Catfish Association Great Britain: Volume
1. p,101.
Sandford, Gina; Fishkeeping Answers, May
1993.
Wimo, Jørgen; African Shocker, Aquarist
& Pondkeeper, Sep.1989.
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| Photo
Credits |
Top: Chris Ralph
Bottom: 
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| Synonyms:
|
| Silurus
electricus |
| Common
Name: |
| Electric Catfish |
| Family: |
| Malapteruridael |
| Subfamily: |
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| Distribution: |
| Africa: Nile and tropical Africa
(except Lake Victoria and rivers of East Africa north of
the Zambezi), Lake Tanganyika and probably Malagarazi,
Fernando Poo Island. Also known from the lower and middle
Zambezi, Pungwe, lower Save, and throughout the Congo
system |
| Size: |
| 90cm. (36ins) |
| Temp: |
| 23
-30°C (73 -87°F) |
| pH.: |
| 6.5 -7.2. |
| Donation: |
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