Fish of the Southern Oceans

Fish of the Southern Oceans
Greenpeace International

Of the 20,000 known species of fish in the world, only 120 live in the Southern Oceans. Throughout the past 40 million years they have adapted to the freezing conditions by developing a special 'anti-freeze' component in their body fluids.

Antarctic fish are especially vulnerable to overfishing because most species take a long time to mature. Overfishing has already depleted the population of several once common fish of the Southern Ocean.

In 1969 fleets began fishing for Marbled Rockcod (Notothenia rossii marmorata) in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Oceans. They caught around 500,000 tonnes in just two fishing seasons. By the mid-1970s the population of Marbled Rockcod plummeted to 2.5% of its original size. The fishery collapsed. Today the population has yet to recover, still just 3% of its original size.

Following the collapse of Marbled Rockcod, the fishing fleets turned to Icefish (Champsocephalus gunnari). More than 230,000 tonnes were caught in 1978. Once again, overfishing decimated the Icefish and the fishery collapsed. It has not recovered.

Now the fishing industry has turned to the last profitable fish in the Southern Oceans - the Patagonian Toothfish.