Wikipedia talk:Featured article candidates/Electric eel/archive1

Blurb

The electric eels are a genus, Electrophorus, of neotropical freshwater fish from South America in the family Gymnotidae. They can stun their prey by generating electricity, delivering shocks at up to 860 volts. Their electrical capabilities were first studied in 1775, contributing to the invention in 1800 of the electric battery. Despite their name, they are not closely related to the true eels (Anguilliformes) but are members of the electroreceptive knifefish order, Gymnotiformes which is more closely related to catfish. In 2019 it was discovered that there were three species of electric eel. Previously, the genus was believed to be monotypic, containing only Electrophorus electricus. They are nocturnal, air-breathing animals, with poor vision complemented by electrolocation; they mainly eat fish. Males are larger than females. Electric eels grow for as long as they live, adding more vertebrae to their spinal column. Some captive specimens have lived for over 20 years. (Full article...)