Torpedo

Torpedo, a genus of cartilaginous fishes of the family Torpedinidae, related to the skates and rays. They are most remarkable for their electric organs, which lie on each side of the head (see ELECTRIC FISHES, with illustrations). The electric shock is powerful enough to kill small animals, and specimens 2 or 3 feet wide can by a single discharge disable a full-grown man. The genus, which includes about six species, is widely distributed over the Atlantic and Indian Oceans; T. marmorata and two others are common in the Mediterranean, and T. hebetans reaches the south coasts of Britain.