Gobionotothen gibberifrons

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Gobionotothen gibberifrons
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Illustration
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Specimen caught off Grikurov Point, King George Island (South Shetland Islands), Antarctica
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Nototheniidae
Genus: Gobionotothen
Species:
G. gibberifrons
Binomial name
Gobionotothen gibberifrons
Synonyms [1]
  • Notothenia gibberifronsLönnberg, 1905
  • Notothenia vaillanti Regan, 1913

Gobionotothen gibberifrons, the humped rockcod or the humphead notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the islands of the Scotia Arc (the South Shetland, South Orkney, South Sandwich and South Georgia islands), the northern part of the Antarctic Peninsula, and Heard Island in the Southern Ocean. This species inhabits depths of 6-429 m (20-1,407 ft), but is most abundant at depths of 100-400 m (328-1,312 ft), at least around Elephant Island. [2] [3]

Contents

Taxonomy and etymology

Gobionotothen gibberifrons was first formally described in 1905 as Notothenia gibberifrons by the Swedish zoologist Einar Lönnberg with the type locality given as the seven locations around South Georgia in the Southern Ocean. [4] The specific name gibberifrons is a compound of gibber which means "humpbacked" and frons meaning "forehead", an allusion to the convex forehead. [5]

Description

This species is distinguished by its steep snout profile, narrow interorbital region (or the interorbital space) and humped forehead (the head is depressed behind the eyes). 1-2 series of small, conical teeth are present on each jaw, and the gill rakers are short. [3]

The general body color is yellowish with irregular dark spots and blotches present on the upper part of the head and body. Juveniles have irregular cross-bars on the body (broken up into three or four series of alternating spots) that are rarely present in adults. The fins are greenish (with the only exception being the anal fin which is pale with 2-3 horizontal bands). The dorsal, caudal and pectoral fins have a series of brown spots present that form transverse bands. The maximum recorded length of this species is 55 cm (21.7 inches), but a length of 40 cm (15.7 inches) is more common. [3] [2]

Ecology

This species is a benthopelagic predator that feeds on polychaetes, echiurans, sipunculids, priapulids, bivalves and crustaceans. If krill is abundant, this species will feed heavily on it. Fish eggs are also taken when available. This species reaches sexual maturity at 36 cm (14.2 inches) TL for both sexes. Males first spawn at 36 cm TL and females first spawn at 38.6 cm (15.2 inches) TL. Mature females may spawn for the first time at 6-8 years of age, and up to 143,620 eggs of up to 2.5 mm diameter may be laid. Spawning occurs from late winter to early spring (the exact months are different from place to place: i.e. August-September around Elephant Island and July-August at South Georgia). Hatching takes place in spring and early summer, and length at hatching is around 7 mm SL. The larvae appear in the water column in September around South Georgia and in November around Elephant Island. The larvae only end their pelagic phase at the end of summer and change to a benthopelagic lifestyle from that time on. [3] [2] [1] Predators include the marbled rockcod (Notothenia rossii), South Georgia icefish (Pseudochaenichthys georgianus), blackfin icefish (Chaenocephalus aceratus), imperial shag (Phalacrocorax atriceps) and the Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella). [1]

Commercial importance

This species is of minor importance to commercial fisheries at present, but it once was heavily fished (total catches amounted to 21,800 tonnes (24,030 tons) in the year 1978 alone). [1] [3]

Related Research Articles

Nototheniidae Family of fishes

Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes, is a family of ray-finned fishes, part of the suborder Notothenioidei which is traditionally placed within the order Perciformes. They are largely found in the Southern Ocean.

Marbled rockcod Species of fish

The marbled rockcod is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean, where it can be found at depths from 5 to 350 m. This is a commercially important species.

The bald notothen, also known as the bald rockcod, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean.

<i>Notothenia</i> Genus of fishes

Notothenia is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes with the species in this genus often having the common name of rockcod. They are native to the Southern Ocean and other waters around Antarctica.

Painted notie Species of fish

The painted notie, or painted notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean.

Mackerel icefish Species of fish

The mackerel icefish is a benthopelagic species of fish found in the Southern Ocean and the southernmost waters of the Atlantic Ocean. They are mainly to be found near Heard and McDonald Islands, Îles Kerguelen and islands in the south Atlantic such as South Georgia and Bouvet Island. The species also inhabits the northern waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. They live at depths of 0–700 metres (0–2,297 ft), but are commonly found at depths of 30 to 250 metres.

<i>Paranotothenia magellanica</i> Species of fish

Paranotothenia magellanica), also known as Magellanic rockcod, Maori cod, blue notothenia or orange throat notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean. "Maori chief" and "black cod", sometimes used for this species, usually refer to fishes from the related genus Notothenia. Being a perciform fish, it is unrelated to the true cods of the order Gadiformes. This species is commercially important as a food fish.

Emerald rockcod Species of fish

The emerald rockcod, also known as the emerald notothen is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean where it is a commercially important species.

<i>Trematomus</i> Genus of fishes

Trematomus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. These fishes occur in the Southern Ocean.

<i>Gobionotothen</i> Genus of fishes

Gobionotothen is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. They are native to the Southern Ocean.

Grey rockcod Species of fish

The grey rockcod, also known as the grey notothen, stripe-eyes notothen or stripe-eyed rockcod, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Southern Ocean,The grey rockcod feed mainly on macrozooplankton and is of minor importance to commercial fisheries. It is the only species in the genus Lepidonotothen

<i>Patagonotothen</i> Genus of fishes

Patagonotothen is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. They are native to the southeast Pacific Ocean, southern Atlantic Ocean and the Southern Ocean.

<i>Notothenia coriiceps</i> Species of fish

Notothenia coriiceps, also known as the black rockcod, Antarctic yellowbelly rockcod, or Antarctic bullhead notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is widely spread around the Antarctic continent. Like other Antarctic notothenioid fishes, N. coriiceps evolved in the stable, ice-cold environment of the Southern Ocean. It is not currently targeted by commercial fisheries.

Notothenia neglecta, the yellowbelly rockcod, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is found in the Southern Ocean in Antarctica. They are omnivorous, and are found in both benthic and pelagic regions of the ocean. Their diet includes krill, bivalves, and gastropods. They have evolved unique behaviors and morphological features in order to thrive in the cold and harsh Antarctic climate. N. neglecta is also commercially fished, although not in high numbers.

<i>Lindbergichthys nudifrons</i> Species of fish

Lindbergichthys nudifrons, the yellowfin rockcod, also known as the yellow notie or the gaudy notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean.

<i>Patagonotothen guntheri</i> Species of fish

Patagonotothen guntheri, the yellowfin notothen, is a species of notothen found in the Argentinian region of Patagonia, the Falkland Islands, the Burdwood Bank and the Shag Rocks west of South Georgia on the continental shelf at depths of 120-250 m, but may be found in waters deeper than 250 m in the Argentinian region.

<i>Gobionotothen marionensis</i> Species of fish

Gobionotothen marionensis, the lobe-lip notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, and the Crozet and Prince Edward Islands in the Indian Ocean.>

Gobionotothen acuta, the triangular rockcod or the triangular notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the French Southern and Antarctic Lands, the Heard Islands and the Kerguelen Plateau in the Southern Ocean.

<i>Notothenia cyanobrancha</i> Species of fish

Notothenia cyanobrancha, the blue rockcod, bluegillnotothen, or bluegill rockcod, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is native to the Kerguelen and Heard Islands in the Southern Ocean.

Stocky rockcod

The stocky rockcod, also known as the bandtail notothen, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. It is found in the Southern Ocean.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2021). "Gobionotothen gibberifrons" in FishBase. June 2021 version.
  2. 1 2 3 Miller, Richard Gordon (1993). A History and atlas of the fishes of the Antarctic Ocean. Nevada, USA: Foresta Institute. p. 792.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 H.H. Dewitt; P.C. Heemstra; and O. Gon (1990). "Nototheniidae Notothens". In O. Gon and P.C. Heemstra (eds.). Fishes of the Southern Ocean. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity. ISBN   9780868102115.
  4. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Gobionotothen". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  5. Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (12 April 2021). "Order Perciformes: Suborder Notothenoididei: Families Bovichtidae, Pseaudaphritidae, Elegopinidae, Nototheniidae, Harpagiferidae, Artedidraconidae, Bathydraconidae, Channichthyidae and Percophidae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 21 September 2021.