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Antarctic Cod
 
   
 
SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION
COMMON NAME: Antarctic cod, Antarctic toothfish, antifreeze fish
KINGDOM: Animalia
PHYLUM: Chordata
CLASS: Osteichthyes
ORDER: Perciformes
FAMILY: Nototheniidae
GENUS SPECIES: Dissostichus mawsoni
 
FAST FACTS
DESCRIPTION: An elongate fish that is mottled brown with four incomplete bars and scattered spots.
SIZE: To 175 cm (5.74 ft.)
WEIGHT: To 80 kg (176.4 lb.)
DIET: Mainly fishes, including Antarctic silverfish; also squid and crustaceans.
INCUBATION: oviparous
SEXUAL MATURITY: At 8 years of age or 100 cm (3.28 ft.) in length
LIFE SPAN: 20-25 years
RANGE: Southern Ocean
HABITAT: Open ocean to depths of 1600 m (5,249 ft.)
POPULATION: GLOBAL unknown
STATUS: IUCN Not listed
CITES Not listed
USFWS Not listed
 
FUN FACTS
1. The Antarctic cod, along with other members of the Nototheniidae family, produces a blood-borne antifreeze protein to prevent its body from freezing.
   
2. Weddell seals often hunt beneath the ice for Antarctic cod. Sperm whales and Type C killer whales also prey on these fish.
   
3. For more information about bony fishes, explore the BONY FISHES INFOBOOK.
 

ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION

Antarctic cod and Patagonian toothfish are marketed in the U.S. as Chilean seabass. Antarctic toothfish are increasingly targeted in an expanding Ross Sea long-line fishery. As a slow growing and reproducing fish, Antarctic toothfish are vulnerable to the effects of overfishing. To help Antarctic cod and Chilean sea bass, support sustainable fisheries & avoid eating species that are overfished.

Antarctic fish are managed by the Convention for Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).
 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Chen et al. Evolution of antifreeze glycoprotein gene from a trypsinogen gene in Antarctic notothenoid fish. 1997.
 
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2007. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version (12/2007).
 

Pinkerton et al. Finding the role of Antarctic toothfish in the Ross Sea ecosystem. 2007.

 
Ponganis & Stockard. The Antarctic toothfish: how common a prey for Weddell seals? 2007.
 
www.icefish.neu.edu/specialtopics/toothfish/
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