‘Nothing but fish nests’: huge icefish colony found in Antarctic sea

‘Nothing but fish nests’: huge icefish colony found in Antarctic sea

By Mabel Banfield-Nwachi

Source: theguardian

1/13/2022

Credit: Alfred Wegener Institute

Researchers exploring Antarctica’s seabed have discovered a thriving, unprecedented colony of icefish “about a third of the size of London”.

The surprise discovery of about 60 million active nests was made by a team of biologists while collecting routine data at 1.5-2.5 metres above the seafloor of Antarctica’s southern Weddell Sea. Before this discovery, the largest found colony contained only 60 nests.

“We expected to see the normal Antarctic seafloor … [but] during the first four hours of our dive, we saw nothing but fish nests,” said Autun Purser, of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in Germany, and lead author of the study published in Current Biology.

The ecosystem was found by accident using the ocean floor observation and bathymetry system, a large, towed camera device that records photos, videos and takes measurements of deep-sea habitats.

Researchers were initially interested in the area because of a process called upwelling, in which wind and currents bring cold water to the surface, causing the water to be 2C warmer than the surrounding area.

Purser suggested the fish may use this warmer water as a navigational tool to help track the colony. “When they feel like reproducing, they look for this warmer water and reproduce there,” he said.

Continue...

News Id		Source	Stamp	country
4101	Brexit Britain's fishing industry set for boom as huge tuna numbers discovered off coast	express	2021-04-07	UK
4102	Sweden's yen for herring roe fuels Lake Superior fishery	mprnews	2012-11-14	US
4103	‘Frankenfish’: Undercover sting lands Markham snakehead fish dealer in jail	thestar	2012-11-14	CA
4104	Taiwanese engineer first florescent pink angelfish	Taiwan News	2012-11-09	TW
4105	Fish memorial proposed for hundreds of bass killed in traffic accident	scpr	2012-10-30	US
4106	Sockeye salmon run in Shuswap shaping up to be lower than expected	infotel	2019-09-24	CA
4107	Adams River salmon run collapse a man-made crisis	saobserver	2019-02-16	CA
4108	Column: Reflecting on changes along the Adams River	saobserver	2020-09-23	CA
4109	Adams River - Tsútswecw Provincial Park Photographing the Salmon Run	canadiannaturephotographer	2018-10-20	CA
4110	Scientists turn fish parts into environmentally friendly plastic	upi	2021-04-05	CA
4111	Kentucky fisherman catches record-breaking fish, searches for certified scale	Fox News	2021-04-08	US
4112	Fish find way around polarization problem	nature	2012-10-22	UK
4113	Bones of 'living fossil' found in Texas	Science News	2012-10-24	US
4114	These fish stole an antifreeze gene from another fish and became natural GMOs	CBC News	2021-04-06	CA
4115	A Cruickshank River damn would help alleviate our drought issues	comoxvalleyrecord	2019-05-30	CA
4116	Take a hike, see devastation in the Comox Lake watershed	decafnation	2019-08-05	CA
4117	Angling For More Than A Fish	cvcollective	2021-04-18	CA
4118	Hooking into the Revelstoke fishing scene	Revelstoke Mountaineer Magazine	2017-08-17	CA
4119	Proposed fish farm permits stall while EPA reviews environmental effects	news-press	2021-04-03	US
4120	Taiwan responds to NGO reports on forced labor within its fishing fleet	seafoodsource	2021-04-02	TW
4121	Salmon with sea lice pulled from stores	UPI	2012-10-22	CA
4122	Chesapeake Striped Bass Reproduction At Record Low	baltimore	2012-10-17	US
4123	Michigan Angler Catches Record-Breaking Great Lakes Muskie	detroit.cbslocal	2012-10-20	US
4124	Mystery Florida eyeball is probably from '10ft swordfish', experts say	theguardian	2012-10-12	US
4125	Rare Gold Saury Worth Weight in Actual Gold, Apparently	soranews24	2012-10-05	JP

164 of [218 - pages.]