| Naked-back knifefishes | |
|---|---|
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| Electric eel, Electrophorus electricus | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Gymnotiformes |
| Suborder: | Gymnotoidei |
| Family: | Gymnotidae Rafinesque, 1815 |
| Genera | |
The naked-back knifefishes are a family (Gymnotidae) of knifefishes found only in fresh watersofCentral America and South America. All have organs adapted to electroreception. The family has about 43 valid species in two genera.[1] These fish are nocturnal and mostly occur in quiet waters from deep rivers to swamps. In strongly flowing waters, they may bury themselves.[2]
Like the other gymnotiforms, gymnotids have classic knifefish bodies. The body is long and eel-like, the dorsal fin and pelvic fins are absent, and the anal fin is extremely long and used for movement.[2]
The sole member of Electrophorus is the electric eel, which produces both strong (up to 600 volts) and weak (<1 V) electric discharges, for use in predation and communication/navigation, respectively. The electric eel is the largest of the gymnotiform fishes, growing up to more than 2 m (6.6 ft) length. Species of Gymnotus range from about 10–100 cm (0.3–3.3 ft) in total length.[3][4]
These knife fishes also use electricity to assist in their movement and navigation in the water due to their limited vision.[5]
According to FishBase, there are 43 species in two genera:[1]
Historically, Electrophorus was in a separate family Electrophoridae and ITIS continues to do this,[6] but this is contradicted by available evidence and not followed by other authorities.[1][4][7][8]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
| Gymnotidae |
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| Gymnotoidei |
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Authority control databases: National  |
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