BBC World Service - CrowdScience, How do electric fish make electricity? Homepage Accessibility links * Skip to content * Accessibility Help Close menu BBC World Service CrowdScience * Home * Episodes * Clips * Podcast * Contact CrowdScience * Join us on Facebook Main content Listen now How do electric fish make electricity? CrowdScience Some fish generate electric shocks four times more powerful than the electricity in your plugs at home. But how do they do it? Show more Some fish can deliver electric shocks that are four times more powerful than the electricity in your plug sockets at home. Crowdscience listener Mouhammed in Cameroon was stunned by this, so he charged us with finding out how they do it. Presenter Caroline Steel heads to Bayreuth in Germany to meet some eels who have this amazing ability. Dr Stefan Schuster and Susanne Proschke introduce us to their collection of electric fish, and help us conduct some experiments to work out how the fish are wired. We’ll be diving into electric fishes' anatomy, learning how a specialised organ allows them to generate massive voltages of electricity. Harold Zakon from the University of Texas will help us understand their evolutionary history, while Brazilian ecologist Nonato Junior takes us on a journey into the currents of the Amazon River where electric eels live. And we’ll answer a question that has boggled philosophers, thinkers, and scientists for over 2000 years. If these fish can stun a human, a crocodile or even a horse, how do they survive the electric shocks themselves? (Photo: Blue lightning bolt streaks. Credit: Ludmila Snimshikova/Getty Images. Electric Eel, Venezuela. Credit: Reinhard Dirscherl/Getty Images) Presenter: Caroline Steel Producer: Robbie Wojciechowski Editor: Ben Motley Show less Download Choose your file * Higher quality (128kbps) * Lower quality (64kbps) Available now 26 minutes Last on Last Monday 12:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa only More episodes Previous Why am I warm blooded? Next Why do I love rollercoasters? See all episodes from CrowdScience Featured * . Broadcasts * Fri 28 Aug 2026 19:32 GMT BBC World Service * Last Monday 01:32 GMT BBC World Service except Americas and the Caribbean * Last Monday 04:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, Americas and the Caribbean, South Asia & East Asia only * Last Monday 08:32 GMT BBC World Service * Last Monday 12:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa only Show more / Show less Podcast * CrowdScience Answering your questions about life, Earth and the universe Related Content Similar programmes By genre: * Factual > Science & Nature > Science & Technology By format: * Discussion & Talk * Online schedule * Help & FAQs * Contact us * News in more than 40 languages * Terms of Use * About the BBC * Privacy Policy * Privacy Policy * Cookies * Cookies * Accessibility Help * Parental Guidance * Contact the BBC * Make an editorial complaint * Careers * BBC emails for you * Advertise with us Copyright (c) 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.