Fishes of the southern ocean

Abstract

In recent years, and especially since the initiation of the BIOMASS (Biological Investigations of Marine Antarctic Systems and Stocks) Programme ten years ago, a large amount of information on the taxonomy and biology of Antarctic fishes has accumulated in many laboratories and institutions the world over. This, together with the fact that the last revisionary review of Antarctic fishes was produced by J.R. Norman (1938) more than half a century ago, was reason enough to undertake the production of a reference book that reviews current knowledge on the taxonomy, distribution and biology of Southern Ocean fishes.Thus, at a meeting of the BIOMASS Working Group on Fish Ecology held in August 1984, O. Gon of the J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Grahamstown, South Africa, introduced the Southern Ocean fish book project to a group of leading Antarctic ichthyologists. The proposal was immediately and enthusiastically endorsed by the group, and further, they agreed that the proposed book should be complementary to two other international projects already under way-the FAO Species Identification Sheets edited by W. Fischer and J.-C. , and the Guide to the Otoliths of Southern Ocean Fishes by T. Hecht (1987).From the beginning, it was recognised that the proposed treatise should be assembled in the same way as the now widely-acclaimed book Smiths' Sea Fishes, i.e. with contributions of different family accounts by a group of international experts each according to his/her own specialty. P.C. Heemstra, who was co-editor of the Smiths' Sea Fishes book, was invited to co-edit the Southern Ocean fish book. This new book includes contributions by 32 ichthyologists from 11 countries who document 272 species belonging to 49 families. Most of the new and highly accurate species illustrations were specially and meticulously prepared for this volume by the talented scientific artist D.P. Voorvelt of the J.L.B. Smith Institute, and will be treasured by the ichthyological community.Fishes of the Southern Ocean is a valuable synthesis of information on the taxonomy and biology of Antarctic fishes. The information provided will force ichthyologists to review current ideas on the origin, evolution and biogeography of the fishes of the Southern Ocean.

Studies on morphology and osteology of Parachaenichthys georgianus (Fischer, 1885) (Notothenioidei, Bathydraconidae) from shelf waters off South Georgia (Antarctica)

“…Also the anal fin showed the range of ray counts ( 30 -34) to be wider than that reported by and . The pectoral fin, too, had in the present study a wider range of ray counts ( 21 -24) than 21 -23 reported by Norman ( 1938) and Gon ( 1990).…”

Resposta Imune Inespecífica De Animais Ectotérmicos Antárticos Sob Temperaturas Polares

“…Por circunstâncias diversas e pelas adaptações que os animais que lá vivem apresentam, escolhemos a Antártica. Procurando espécies que tivessem uma distribuição nas grandes latitudes, podendo assim comparar animais colhidos numa região sub-antártica (Ilha Rei George), com fauna antártica (Fischer & Hureau 1985, Gon & Heemstra 1990). …”

Fishing yields and size structures of Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) caught with pots and long lines off far southern Chile

“…Given its wide Antarctic circumpolar distribution, D. eleginoides is caught mainly around the southern cone of America, the Falkland/Malvinas islands, South Georgia Island, and numerous other islands and oceanic elevations (Gon & Heemstra, 1990). A large part of the distribution of this resource is located in the Sub Antarctic and the Antarctic and its exploitation therein is regulated by the standards adopted by the Convention for the Conservation of Live Antarctic Marine Resources (CCRVMA).…”