Patagonian toothfish

The Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides), also known as Chilean seabass, mero, icefish, and Antarctic cod, is a species of notothen found in cold waters () between depths of in the southern Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans and Southern Ocean on seamounts and continental shelves around most Subantarctic islands. A close relative, the Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni), is found farther south around the edges of the Antarctic shelf, and a Marine Stewardship Council-certified fishery is active in the Ross Sea. Both species are sometimes marketed as Chilean sea bass. The average weight of a commercially caught Patagonian toothfish is , depending on the fishery, with large adults occasionally exceeding . They are thought to live up to 50 years and to reach a length up to . Several commercial fisheries exist for Patagonian toothfish, which are detailed below. The Patagonian toothfish was first formally described in 1898 by the Swedish zoologist Fredrik Adam Smitt with the type locality given as Puerto Toro at 55°24'S, 68°17'W on the Chilean part of Tierra del Fuego. Smitt also described the new genus Dissostichus for this new species, meaning that the Patagonian toothfish is the type species of this genus by monotypy. The specific name eleginoides means having the form of, i.e. having a similar shape to, Eleginops. The Patagonian toothfish has a streamlined, fusiform body that has a depth that fits into its standard length 5 to 6.4 times. It has a flattened head with a wide, flat area between the eyes. The snout is longer than the diameter of the eyes. The mouth is large, extending past the middle of the eye. There are two rows of teeth in the upper jaw, the teeth in the outer row being the larger and canine-like. The lower jaw has a row of spaced canine-like teeth. Additional canine-like teeth are found outside the teeth rows at the joint of the upper and lower jaws. There are two lateral lines; both made up of tubed scales, an upper one and another along the mid flanks.

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Related concepts (9)

Southern Ocean

The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-smallest of the five principal oceanic divisions: smaller than the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans but larger than the Arctic Ocean. Since the 1980s, the Southern Ocean has been subject to rapid climate change, which has led to changes in the marine ecosystem.

Antarctic toothfish

The Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni) is a large, black or brown fish found in very cold (subzero) waters of the Southern Ocean near Antarctica. It is the largest fish in the Southern Ocean, feeding on shrimp and smaller fish, and preyed on by whales, orcas, and seals. It is caught for food and marketed as Chilean sea bass together with its sister species, the more northerly Patagonian toothfish (D. eliginoides). Often mistakenly called "Antarctic cod," the Antarctic toothfish belongs to the notothen family (Nototheniidae), a group of fish species abundant near Antarctica.

Nototheniidae

In some scientific literature, the term "cod icefish" is used to identify members of this family. This should not be confused with the term "icefish," which refers to the "white-blooded" fishes of the family Channichthyidae. See Icefish (disambiguation). 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.