Notothenia

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Notothenia
Bullhead notothen.jpg
Notothenia coriiceps
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Nototheniidae
Genus: Notothenia
J. Richardson, 1844
Type species
Notothenia coriiceps
J. Richardson, 1844
Synonyms [1]

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.

Contents

Taxonomy

Notothenia was first formally described as a genus in 1844 by the Scottish naval surgeon, naturalist and Arctic explorer John Richardson when he described N. coriiceps which was later designated as the type species of the genus. [1] Some authorities place this taxon in the subfamily Nototheniinae, [2] but the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not include subfamilies in the Nototheniidae. [3] The name of the genus is a compound of notos meaning “south” and thenia which means “coming from”, an allusion to the high southern latitudes these fishes are found at. [4]

Species

Notothenia angustata (Maori chief) Notothenia angustata (Maori chief).gif
Notothenia angustata (Maori chief)

Seven recognized species are in this genus: [5]

Characteristics

Notothenia fishes have oblong bodies which are compressed towards the tail with a large head, small eyes and a large mouth. The lower jaw does not protrude and the mouth extends as far back as the middle of the eye. There are moderately sized teeth in the jaws with no large canine-like teeth. There are two lateral lines consisting of tubed scales, one on the upper body and the other on the mid-flank. Most of the scales on the body are smooth while much of the head is naked. The pectoral fins are notably larger than the pelvic fins while the caudal fin may be rounded, truncate one emarginate. [2] They vary in maximum total length from 30 cm (12 in) in the blue rockcod to 92 cm (36 in) in the marbled rockcod. [5]

Distribution and habitat

Notothenia rockcods are found in the Southern Ocean where there are four species with two species in the southwestern Pacific Ocean and a single species in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. [5] The young fish are pelagic and the adults are benthic. [2]

Biology

Notothenia rockcods have some adaptations that allow them to thrive in such inhospitable habitat, like antifreeze proteins in their blood [6] and ample fat to insulate them against heat loss and to offset their lack of a swim bladder. [7] They are benthic predators feeding on invertebrates and smaller fishes, although algae are consumed in large quantities too. The pelagic fingerlings allow the wide dispersal of the species around the Southern Ocean. [2]

Fisheries

Notothenia rockcods are targeted by some fisheries, with N. rossi being an important commercially fished species. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nototheniidae</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marbled rockcod</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Painted notie</span> 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.

<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.

<i>Pagothenia</i> Genus of fishes

Pagothenia 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emerald rockcod</span> 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.

<i>Gvozdarus</i> Genus of fishes

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey rockcod</span> 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 feeds mainly on macrozooplankton and is of minor importance to commercial fisheries. It is the only species in the genus Lepidonotothen.

Nototheniops is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Nototheniidae, the notothens or cod icefishes. The species in this genus are native to the Southern Ocean.

<i>Paranotothenia</i> Genus of fishes

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

<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>Gobionotothen gibberifrons</i> Species of fish

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 northern part of the Antarctic Peninsula, and Heard Island in the Southern Ocean. This species inhabits depths of 6-429 m, but is most abundant at depths of 100-400 m, at least around Elephant Island.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stocky rockcod</span> Species of ray-finned fish

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 Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Nototheniidae". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  2. 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.
  3. ↑ J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. p. 465. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  4. ↑ 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 23 September 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2014). Species of Notothenia in FishBase . February 2014 version.
  6. ↑ Zulema L. Coppes Petricorena; George N. Somero (2006). "Biochemical adaptations of notothenioid fishes: Comparisons between cold temperate South American and New Zealand species and Antarctic species". Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology A. 147 (3): 799–807. doi:10.1016/j.cbpa.2006.09.028. PMID   17293146.
  7. ↑ Joseph T. Eastman and Arthur L. DeVries (1982). "Buoyancy Studies of Notothenioid Fishes in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica". Copeia. 1982 (2): 385–393. doi:10.2307/1444619. JSTOR   1444619.
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