Mormyridae (redirected from Mormyrids)

Mormyridae [mȯr′mir·ə‚dē]

(vertebrate zoology)

A large family of electrogenic fishes belonging to the Osteoglossiformes; African river and lake fishes characterized by small eyes, a slim caudal peduncle, and approximately equal dorsal and anal fins in most.

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Mormyridae 

a family of fish of the order Mormyriformes. The body measures up to 1.5 m long. The snout is extended in a tube and is sometimes bent downward, enabling the fish to extract from the soil the invertebrates on which it feeds. Mormyrs live in fresh bodies of water in Africa. There are several genera (such as Mormyrus and Gnathonemus), comprising more than 30 species. Some representatives of the genus Mormyrus have electric organs on the sides of their tails, which serve for signaling (impulses are sent with different frequencies and received by other individuals). Mormyrs have commercial value.