Pingie: HTTP:: Electric Fish Have Energy Saving 039 Switches 039

HTTP:: Electric Fish Have Energy Saving 039 Switches 039
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A fairly big number of fish species, including eels and sharks, has the ability to generate and discharge electrical currents in the water around. The ability is used either to stun prey, or for defensive purposes, depending on the situation. Now, a new study has revealed that some of these species are also equipped with dimmer switches, whose purpose is to turn down the electrical activity in the fish, so as to preserve energy. The switch addresses the battery-like organ most electric fish carry in their tails, LiveScience reports. Naturalists and biologists have known for a long time that generating electrical impulses is a very energy-consuming process for the fish, and, naturally, it would be unsustainable for the animals to keep themselves on alert all the time. In the new investigation, a species known as Sternopygus macrurus has been analyzed. For example, this fish needs to be active during the night, and must avoid electrical field-sensing predators, such as the !
catfish. Without the ability to turn down its electricity, it would surely become food for the predator. While looking inside the electrical organ, during the latest study, experts have observed dimmer switches, located in the membrane of electrocytes. These are the cells in which the electrical charges build up, before they are ch...
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http://news.softpedia.com/news/Electric-Fish-Have-Energy-Saving-039-Switches-039-122862.shtml
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