Black Ghost

Black Ghost

The black ghost knifefish (Apteronotus albifrons) is a tropical fish belonging to the ghost knifefish family (Apteronotidae). They originate in freshwater habitats in South America where ranging from Venezuela to the Paraguay–Paraná River, including the Amazon Basin.^[1]They are popular in aquaria. The fish is all black except for two white rings on its tail, and a white blaze on its nose, which can occasionally extend into a stripe down its back. It moves mainly by undulating a long fin on its underside. It will grow to a maximum length of 50 cm (20 in).^[1] It does not have scales.

Black ghost knife fish are nocturnal. They are a weakly electric fish which use an electric organ and receptors distributed over the length of their body in order to locate insect larvae.

QUICK STATS Minimum Tank Size: 150 gallons Care Level: Moderate Temperament: Semi-aggressive Water Conditions: 73-80° F, KH 0-10, pH 6.5-7.0 Max. Size: 1' 6" Color Form: Black Diet: Carnivore Origin: South America Family: Apteronotidae

The kind of EOD produced can be used to distinguish between two types of weakly electric fish: the pulse-type and the wave-type.^[8] The black ghost knifefish are considered to be the latter type, because they can continuously generate EODs in small intervals. Wave-type EODs have a narrow power spectra, and can be heard as a tonal sound, where the discharge rate establishes the fundamental frequency.^[6] By emitting its own continuous sinusoidal train of EODs, the fish can determine the presence of nearby objects by sensing perturbations in timing and amplitude of electric fields, an ability known as active electrolocation.^[7] The particular organs used to sense the self-generated high-frequency EODs are tuberous electroreceptor organs. On the other hand, when low-frequency electric fields are generated by external sources instead of the fish itself, a different class of electroreceptor organs is used for this passive electrolocation, called ampullary organs. Therefore, the black ghost knifefish uses an active and a passive electrosystem, each with its own corresponding receptor organs.^[2] The fish can also use a mechanosensory lateral line system, which detects water disturbances created by the motion of the fish's body.^[9] As nocturnal hunters, the fish can rely on all three systems to navigate through dark environments and detect their prey.