Electric Catfish

Linnean classification: Eukarya, Animalia,  Chordata, Actinopterygii, Siluriformes, Malapterurida, Malapterurus, Malapterurus electricus

Conformer: The Electric Catfish is a conformer. As it lives in water, they are cold-blooded organisms with the ability to adopt their body temperature to that of their environment.

Migration: The Electric Catfish migrates through streams and rivers with cyclical and predictable migrations. They are thought to cover more than 100 km.

Specialist: The Electric Catfish are specialists that inhabit only Africa

Consumer: It is a consumer, as it cannot produce it’s own food but must consume other organisms to get the nutrients and energy its needs.

Carnivore: The Electric Catfish is a carnivore that uses stunning techniques to eat fish up to half their size.

Niche: The Electric Catfish lives in waters of Eastern, Southern, Northern, and Western Africa. They are particularly found in the warm waters of the Nile and nest in holes or sunken rocks and logs. As nocturnal predators of the waters, they use their ability to stun fish through electric frequencies in order to catch their prey - almost any other fish that is amll enough to be caught. They only have few natural predators, partly due to its ability to defend itself with electric currents.