(Zoology) fish that has electric organs and is able to give electrical shock from its organs and enlarged pectoral (lives in tropical or temperate seas), crampfish, numbfish, electrical fish, torpedo
any sluggish bottom-dwelling ray of the order Torpediniformes having a rounded body and electric organs on each side of the head capable of emitting strong electric discharges
Any of various tropical or subtropical marine fishes of the family Torpedinidae, having a rounded body and a pair of organs capable of producing an electric discharge, which is used to stun or kill prey. Also called crampfish, numbfish, torpedo. Any of the aquatic rays (families Torpedinidae, Narkidae, and Temeridae) that produce an electrical shock. They are found worldwide in warm and temperate seas, mostly in shallow water but some (genus Benthobatis) at depths greater than 3,000 ft (900 m). Slow-moving bottom-dwellers, they feed on fishes and invertebrates. They range in length from less than 1 ft (30 cm) to about 6 ft (1.8 m) and have a short, stout tail. They are soft and smooth-skinned, with a circular or nearly circular body disk formed by the head and pectoral fins. They are harmless unless touched or stepped on. The electric organs, composed of modified muscle tissue, are in the disk near the head. The shock from these organs, which may reach 220 volts and is strong enough to fell a human adult, is used for defense, sensory location, and capturing prey