In the electric eel, some 5,000 to 6,000 stacked electroplaques can make a shock up to 860 volts and 1 ampere of current (860 watts) for two milliseconds (ms). Such a shock is extremely unlikely to be deadly for an adult human, due to the very short duration of the discharge. Atrial fibrillation requires that roughly 700 mA be delivered across the heart muscle for 30 ms or more, far longer than the eel can produce. Still, this level of current is reportedly enough to produce a brief and painful numbing shock likened to a stun gun discharge, which due to the voltage can be felt for some distance from the fish; this is a common risk for aquarium caretakers and biologists attempting to handle or examine electric eels.
how much voltage does an electric eel have
up to 860 volts