Digitalphilologie

Titel

Baron Humboldt’s Description of the Mode of Catching the Gymnotus, or Electrical Eel

Jahr

1833

Ort

London

Nachweis

in: The Zoological Magazine, or Journal of Natural History (1833), S. 76–80.

Sprache

Englisch

Typografischer Befund

Antiqua; Auszeichnung: Kursivierung; Schmuck: Kapitälchen.

Identifikation

Textnummer Druckausgabe: II.52
Dateiname: 1807-Jagd_und_Kampf-7-neu

Statistiken

Seitenanzahl:	5
Zeichenanzahl:	11354

Weitere Fassungen
	Jagd und Kampf der electrischen Aale mit Pferden (Halle, 1807, Deutsch)
	О ловлѣ Електрическихъ угрей. Изъ путешествія Барона А. Гумбольда [O lovlě Električeskich ugrej. Iz putešestvija Barona A. Gumbolʹda] (Sankt Petersburg, 1807, Russisch)
	[Jagd und Kampf der electrischen Aale mit Pferden] (Stuttgart; Tübingen, 1808, Deutsch)
	[Jagd und Kampf der electrischen Aale mit Pferden] (Innsbruck, 1809, Deutsch)
	Waarnemingen van Alexander von Humboldt Over den sidderaal of den gymnotus electricus, In Amerika zelve gedaan (Haarlem, 1817, Niederländisch)
	Over den beef-aal, of sidder-visch (Amsterdam, 1818, Niederländisch)
	Baron Humboldt’s Description of the Mode of Catching the Gymnotus, or Electrical Eel (London, 1833, Englisch)
	Baron Humboldt’s description of the mode of catching the Gymnotus, or Electrical Eel (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1834, Englisch)

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baron humboldt’s description of the mode of catch- ing the gymnotus, or electrical eel.

While traversing the immense plains of the province of Caraccas, in order to embark at St. Fernando de Apure, and commence our voyage on the Orinoco, we stayed five days at Calabozo, a small town situated, according to my observa- tions, in 8° 56′ 56″ north latitude. The object of this visit was to study the electric eels (Gymnoti), an innumerable quantity of which are found in the neighbourhood. Indeed I was assured, that near Urituca a road, once much frequented, had been entirely abandoned on account of these electric fishes; travellers being obliged to ford a stream in which a number of mules were annually drowned, stunned by the shocks they received from the Gymnoti. In order to perform our experiments with more precision, we were desirous of having the electric eels in the house which we inhabited at Calabozo. Our host took all possible pains to gratify our desires. He sent Indians on horseback to fish in the pools. It was easy enough to procure plenty of dead Gymnoti; but an almost puerile fear prevented the natives from bringing them alive. We were afterwards, it is true, con- vinced of the difficulty of handling this fish whilst it still retained all its powers: but the dread of the common people |77| is the more extraordinary in these countries, as they pretend that any one with tobacco in his mouth may touch a gymnotus with impunity. If the Indian had full confidence in this pre- servative, which is altogether false, why did he not avail him- self of it to gain the ten francs which we had promised for every living electric eel that was brought to us? The love of the marvellous is so great among the natives, that they often maintain and spread abroad as facts what they themselves are far from putting faith in. It is thus that man thinks he must needs add to the wonders of Nature, as if Nature was not of herself sufficiently mysterious, grand and imposing. After three days of fruitless attempts in the town of Cala- bozo, during which we received only one eel alive, and that in a very weak state, we resolved to transport ourselves to the spot, and make our experiments in the open air, on the banks of the pools in which the gymnoti abounded. We reached first a little village called Rastro de Abaxo; thence the Indians conducted us to Caño de Bera, a muddy stag- nant pool of water, but surrounded with a beautiful vegeta- tion of the Clusia rosea, the Hymenea Courbaril, the large Indian figs, and Mimosæ with odoriferous flowers. We were much surprised on being told that thirty wild horses must be caught in the neighbouring savannahs, to serve for the fish- ery of the electric eels. The idea of this mode of fishing, which they call embarbascar con caballos, (to stupify by means of horses,) is truly very odd. The word barbasco signifies the roots of Jacquinia, of Piscidia, or of any other poisonous plant, by the contact of which a great extent of water re- ceives in an instant the power of killing, or at least of intoxi- cating or benumbing, the fishes. The latter rise to the sur- face of the water when they are poisoned in this way. As the horses driven here and there in a pool cause the same effect with respect to the frightened fishes, the natives, con- founding cause and effect, call the two modes of fishing by the same name. Whilst our host was explaining to us this strange mode of catching fish in this country, the troop of horses and mules arrived. The Indians formed a sort of battue, and encircling the poor quadrupeds closely on every side, compelled them to enter the pool. I can but imperfectly depict the interest- ing spectacle which the attack of the eels upon the horses presented to us. The Indians, holding long canes and har- poons, place themselves around the pool; some of them climb the trees whose branches project over the surface of the water; and all of them by their shouts and their weapons prevent the |78| horses from gaining the bank. The eels, confounded by the hubbub and splashing of the horses, defend themselves by the reiterated discharge of their electric batteries. For a long time they seem victorious over the horses and mules; everywhere we see the latter, stunned with the fre- quency and force of the electric shocks, disappearing beneath the water. Some of the horses recover themselves, and, despite the active vigilance of the Indians, gain the bank; overcome by fatigue, and their limbs paralyzed by the power of the electric commotions, they lay outstretched upon the earth. How I wished that a clever painter could have seized the moment when the scene was at its greatest animation. The groups of Indians surrounding the pools,—the horses, with mane erect, and eyes of fright and pain, struggling to escape from the storm which had surprised them;—those yellow livid eels, like great aquatic serpents, swimming upon the surface of the water, and pursuing their enemy;—all these objects presented, in truth, a most picturesque ensemble. I remembered the superb painting which represents a horse entering a cavern and scared at the sight of a lion! The ex- pression of terror was not stronger than we witnessed in this unequal conflict. In less than five minutes, two horses were already drowned. The eel, being more than five feet in length, glides beneath the body of the horse or mule; it then gives a discharge from the whole length of its electric organ. It attacks at the same time the heart, the digestive viscera, and above all the plexus of the gastric nerves. One cannot feel astonished, then, that the effect produced by the fish upon a great quadruped much exceeds that produced on man, which it only touches by one of the extremities. I doubt, however, that the Gymnoti kill the horses immediately; I rather imagine that the latter, stunned by the electric shocks which they receive in rapid succession, fall into a profound lethargy. Deprived of all sensibility, they disappear beneath the water, the other horses and mules pass over their bodies, and a few minutes suffice to make them perish. After this commencement, I began to fear that this conflict would terminate very tragically. I did not doubt but that I should in a little time see all the mules drowned. We pay, however, only eight francs for each, if the master of it is known. But the Indians assured us that the fishing would soon be over, and that it was only the first assault of the gymnoti that was formidable. In fact, whether it is that the galvanic electricity accumulates during a state of rest, or |79| that the electric organ ceases to perform its functions when fatigued by too long usage, the eels, after a certain time, re- semble discharged batteries. Their muscular motions con- tinue equally lively, but they have no longer the power of discharging very energetic shocks. When the conflict had lasted a quarter of an hour, the mules and horses seemed less alarmed; they did not erect the mane, their eye expressed less pain and terror; we saw them no longer fall over. On the other hand the eels, swimming half out of the water, and endeavouring to avoid the horses in place of attacking them, in their turn approached towards the bank. The Indians as- sured us, that no horse is killed when driven two days after- wards into the pool. These electric fishes require rest and abundant nourishment to produce and to accumulate a great quantity of the galvanic electricity. We know, by the expe- riments that have been made upon the torpedos (electric rays) of Italy, that on cutting or tying the nerves which go to the electric organs, the functions of these parts cease as the move- ment of a muscle is suspended, as long as the ligature of the main artery or nerve remains. The organs of the torpedo or gymnotus depend upon the nervous system and the vital func- tions: they are not mere electro-motive apparatuses, which attract from the surrounding bed of water the electricity they have lost. One cannot, therefore, be surprised that the power of the electric shocks of the gymnoti depends upon their health, and consequently upon rest, nourishment, age, and probably a great assemblage of physical and moral con- ditions. The eels, making towards the bank, are taken with great facility. Small harpoons, attached to cords, are cast at them; the harpoon sometimes brings up two at a time. By this means they are drawn out of the water without the cord, which is very dry and of some length, communicating the shock to the person who holds it. In a few minutes five large eels were on dry land. One might have caught twenty, if as many had been wanted for our experiments. Many were only slightly wounded in the tail; others severely in the head. We were enabled to observe the natural electricity of these fishes, modified by the different degrees of the vital force which they enjoyed. I shall describe in this Memoir not only the experiments made, in conjunction with M. Bon- pland, on the gymnoti taken in our presence, but also those which we had an opportunity of making upon an eel of an enormous size, which we found in our house on our return from Rastro to Calabozo. This latter had been caught in a net; it had not received any wound. Immediately on being |80| drawn out of the water, it had been put into the same tray in which it was brought to Calabozo. Remaining thus in the same water it was accustomed to, galvanic electricity had not been altered. We shall see, however, in the course of this Memoir, that the wounded gymnoti, that is to say, those of less power, are much more instructive in the inquiry into galvanic phænomena than the very active gymnoti, for many shades escape the eye of the observer when the electric tor- rent takes as impetuous a course across good conductors, as across those which are more imperfect. When one has seen the eels knock down a horse, and de- prive it of all sensibility, he is naturally afraid to touch them the moment they are brought out of the water. So strong, in fact, is this dread among the people of the country, that none of them could muster up resolution to disengage the gymnoti from the cords of the harpoon, or to transport them to the little holes filled with water which we had made along the bank of the Caño de Bera. It needed all our fortitude to receive ourselves the first shocks, which certainly were not very agreeable. The most energetic surpassed in power the most painful electric shocks I ever remembered to have re- ceived, accidentally, from a large and completely charged Leyden jar. From that time we readily conceived that, with- out doubt, there was no exaggeration in the story of the In- dians, when they assert that persons who are swimming are drowned when one of these eels attacks them by the leg or the arm. A discharge so violent is fully capable of depriving a man for many minutes of all use of his limbs. If the gym- notus should glide along the belly or the chest, death might even follow instantaneously the electric shock; for, as we have before observed, the most noble parts, as the heart, the ga- stric system, the cœliac plexus, and all the nerves that de- pend upon it, would at once be deprived of their irritability. A feeble electricity augments the vital forces,—a strong de- gree extinguishes them entirely.—Voyage de Humboldt et Bonpland ; Zoologie, p. 54.

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