Channichthyidae

Icefish
Chionodraco hamatus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Notothenioidei
Family: Channichthyidae
T. N. Gill, 1861[1]
Genera

see text

The crocodile icefish or white-blooded fish comprise a family (Channichthyidae) of notothenioid fish found in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. They are the only known vertebrates to lack hemoglobin in their blood as adults.[2] Icefish populations are known to reside in the Atlantic and Indian sectors of the Southern Ocean, as well as the continental shelf waters surrounding Antarctica.[3] Water temperatures in these regions remain relatively stable, generally ranging from −1.8 to 2 °C (28.8 to 35.6 °F).[4] One icefish, Champsocephalus esox, is distributed north of the Antarctic Polar Frontal Zone.[3] At least 16 species of crocodile icefish are currently recognized,[2] although eight additional species have been proposed for the icefish genus Channichthys.[5]

In February 2021, scientists discovered and documented a breeding colony of Neopagetopsis ionah icefish estimated to have 60 million active nests across an area of approximately 92 square miles at the bottom of the Weddell Sea in Antarctica.[6] The majority of nests were occupied by one adult fish guarding an approximated estimate of 1,735 eggs in each nest.[7]

  1. ^ Richard van der Laan; William N. Eschmeyer & Ronald Fricke (2014). "Family-group names of Recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (2): 001–230. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1. PMID 25543675.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Siddel2006 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Kock, KH (2005). "Antarctic icefishes (Channichthyidae): a unique family of fishes. A review, Part I". Polar Biology. 28 (11): 862–895. doi:10.1007/s00300-005-0019-z. S2CID 12382710.
  4. ^ Clarke, A. (1990). "Temperature and evolution: Southern Ocean cooling and the Antarctic marine fauna". In Kerry, K. R; Hempel, G (eds.). Antarctic Ecosystems. pp. 9–22. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-84074-6. ISBN 978-3-642-84076-0. S2CID 32563062.
  5. ^ Voskoboinikova, Olga (2002). "Early life history of two Channichthys species from the Kerguelen Islands, Antarctica (Pisces: Notothenioidei: Channichthyidae)". Zoosystematica Rossica. 10 (2): 407–412. doi:10.31610/zsr/2001.10.2.407. S2CID 252225313.
  6. ^ Imbler, Sabrina (13 January 2022). "'Major Discovery' Beneath Antarctic Seas: A Giant Icefish Breeding Colony". The New York Times.
  7. ^ Purser, Autun; Hehemann, Laura; Boehringer, Lilian; Tippenhauer, Sandra; Wege, Mia; Bornemann, Horst; Pineda-Metz, Santiago E.A.; Flintrop, Clara M.; Koch, Florian; Hellmer, Hartmut H.; Burkhardt-Holm, Patricia; Janout, Markus; Werner, Ellen; Glemser, Barbara; Balaguer, Jenna; Rogge, Andreas; Holtappels, Moritz; Wenzhoefer, Frank (2022). "A vast icefish breeding colony discovered in the Antarctic". Current Biology. 32 (4): 842–850.e4. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2021.12.022. hdl:2263/90796. PMID 35030328. S2CID 245936769.