Placoderms are the iconic prehistoric fish from the Devonian. Recent 3D scans have revealed their astonishing anatomical similarities with us humans.
The shelf fishing grounds of Kerguelen Islands and of some neighbouring ocean shallows were studied in April 1975. The occurrence of 15 species representing 9 families was found in the catches. Detailed study of the following five species was performed: Champsocephalus gunnari, Channichthys rhinoceratus, Notothenia rossi rossi, N. squamifrons and Dissostichus eleginoides, all of potential commercial importance. The boundaries of regions with concentrations of Ch. gunnari and N. squamifrons were determined, the productive and suitable for trawling fishing grounds were localized.
During austral summer of 1979 in the area of Elephant Island ten species of fish representatives of five families, were identified.
Studies were performed on two species of fish from family Chaenichthyidae and on seven species of family Nototheniidae. Statistical analysis of the subcutaneous and trunk muscle fibres diameter from the trunk and tail area allowed to state that the thickness of these fibres is inversely proportional to the metabolism level of fish. The inter-species similarities were found, but they were not found within families, if their representatives differed in metabolic level.
226 papers by Polish authors and co-authors have been collected. They deal with Antarctic or sub-Antarctic fishes and also their parasites. The majority (35.7%) of the publications discuss fish biology including growth, age, maturity, feeding and occurrence of particular species in the area. Fewer papers are devoted to parasitology (26.0%). Papers dealing with fish biomass and exploitation make up 18.5%. Papers dealing with morphology and systematics make up 6.6%. The remaining papers are devoted to technology, physiology, palaeontology and others.
The paper comprises the review of all known species of cestodes parasitizing the Antarctic and Subantarctic fishes along with synonyms and keys based on morphological features. Also, the review of larval forms of cestodes occurring in bony fishes and provisional identification of them with adult forms is given. In total, 11 valid species (and 3 unnamed forms) of the order Tetraphyllidea and Diphyllidea occur in skates, whereas 3 species of the order Pseudophyllidea were reported from bony fishes. Six morphological forms of larvae, 5 belonging to the Tetraphyllidea and one to the family Tetrabothriidae as well as undetermined plerocercoids of Diphyllobothriidae were recognized.
Blood of 71 specimens of Notothenia rossii marmorata and 61 specimens of Notothenia neglecta from the region of Admiralty Bay (King George Island) was examined. The number of erythrocytes and hemoglobin content were higher in the blood of N. neglecta. The number of erythrocytes and hemoglobin content were similar in males and females of both species. Considerable differences were noted between individual specimens.
From July to October 1977, during the polar winter and at the beginning of spring, line-fishing was carried out at Admiralty Bay, near the Arctowski Station on King George Island, (South Shetland Islands). At that time only three species of fish were caught: Notothenia rossi marmorata, Notothenia coriiceps neglecta and Trematomus newnesi. Fish was caught in the irshore zone at depths ranging from 2 to 40—60 m.
Juvenile fishes of the family Nototheniidae were recorded during fishing for krill eastwards of the Balleny Islands. The paper describes juveniles of the most abundant species. Trematomus bernacchii and Pagothenia brachysoma, their distribution and abundance. Also the correctness of assigning of some juveniles to the species T. bernacchii is discussed.
Between December 1978 and March 1979 studies on the ichthyofauna distribution in the regions of the Scotia Sea and Antarctic Peninsula were carried out on board of the r/v "Profesor Siedlecki" during the Fourth Polish Marine Antarctic Expedition. Fisheries were carried out using bottom and pelagic trawls. The presence of about 60 species of 15 families, including among others 17 species of Nototheniidae, 9 species of Chaenichthyidae and 7 species of Bathydraconidae was recorded. Iti the waters of the west regions of the Antarctic such species as Trematomus centronotus and Austrolycichtys botriocephalus were found.
24 species of 8 fish families were found to occur on the shelf of Elephant Island during austral spring and summer of 1986/87 season. Notothenia gibberifrons was a predominant species (78—83% per catch). The presence of Champsocephalus gunnari and Chaenocephalus aceratus (15—20% per catch) almost completed fish composition profile. A pronounced decrease of Notothenia rossi (0.03—0.04% per catch) was noticed. Some specimens of Champsocephalus gunnari were characterized by a spawning-time shifted by almost half a year comparing to the remaining part of its population.
Fatty acids are very important biological substances due to their metabolic, structural and signal- ing functions. Omega-3 has different beneficial, harmful and neutral effects on adipokines. Adi- pokines have autocrine, paracrine and endocrine effects on metabolism. In the study 54 German Fawn x Hair crossbred goats were synchronized using intravaginal sponges. During the first pe- riod (mating-75 days), all animals were fed a diet supplemented with protected fat and during the second period of pregnancy (76 days-kidding), one of the groups was fed a diet supplemented with fish oil and other was fed a diet supplemented with protected fat. Serum leptin, ghrelin, adi- ponektin and omentin levels were measured by ELISA system. Distributed fed (roughage and concentrate) were sampled and dry matter, crude protein, fat, and ash were determined by AOAC (1988) analysis methods. The Acid Detergent Fiber (ADF) and Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) analysis were conducted using heat stable α-amylase and sodium sulphite. Fat source (fish oil or protected fat) affected feed consumption and the highest feed consumption was found in the group fed with protected oil first half of the pregnancy and with fish oil in the second half of the pregnancy and in the fish oil group during the pregnancy. It was determined that the use of fish oil during pregnancy did not affect ghrelin, leptin and omentin concentrations in serum. Adipokine levels of fish oil fed animals during any period of pregnancy were found to be high and it was also found that serum adiponectin levels in goats fed with diet containing fish oil in the first half of pregnancy and protected fat in the second half were statistically significantly high in adipokines.
During marine ecological surveys conducted by Polish expeditions in South Spitsbergen area 14 fish species were collected. The length frequency, the diet and some other ecological informations are presented for the most common species.
During the SIBEX1' programme in December 1983/January 1984, 27 hauls were made from the "Profesor Siedlecki" with a 368 — mesh midwater sampling trwal. A total of 13 fish species at postlarval or juvenile stages was found in the catches. The greatest aboundance and species diversity of juvenile ichthyofauna was observed within shelf waters of the Peninsula. Postlarval and juvenile Pleuragramma antarcticum was the most common and most aboundant species there.
Polish exploration and exploitation of marine resources of Antarctic waters date back to the reconnaissance cruise of the Sea Fisheries Institutes (SFI) r/v Profesor Siedlecki in 1974. Since 1975, a co-operation between the Institute of Ecology, Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS) at Dziekanów Leśny and SFI in Gdynia with participation of the University of Agriculture in Szczecin, Faculty Marine Fisheries and Food Technology (UA) was established. Fishing fleets of the Polish Deep-Sea Fisheries Companies Odra, Dalmor and Gryf, since 1976 were operating in the Atlantic sector of Antarctic waters, south of the convergence.
A total of 704 fishes representing 39 species were examined. Twenty five digenean species were recognized. Only one species previously found by the present author in a fiord of this area was absent in the material. Pelagic species were usually not parasitized by digeneans, while demersal fishes were normally found to be infected. Results of the present study are compared to those from fiords. Seven species were found to be widely distributed. Two of them, Macvicaria pennelli and Genolinea bowersi, were associated with an inshore fiord environment and could be used as biological tags indicating the association of hosts with this kind of environment. Three of widely distributed species, Lepidapedon garrardi, Elytrophalloides oatesi and Lecilhaster macrocotyle, were not clearly associated with any environment.
Gonocerca phycidis, Neolebouria antarctica and other less widely distributed species, with the exception of Postmonorchis variabilis, were associated with deep part of fiords and/or open sea shelf environment. The level of infection of open sea fish at the South Shetlands was low. Many fish species living at South Georgia were massively infected; the dominant species in this area is E. oatesi, which was rare off the South Shetland Islands. A total of 45 digenean species occurring in the Antarctic fish were listed. Eleven of them were not endemic.
The aim of this study was to assess the anisakid nematode distribution pattern in the fish collected from the South Shetland Islands . A total of 32 fish species were examined for the presence of nematodes in 1978, 1979, 1981 and 2007/2008. The fish were caught off the South Shetland Islands ( Elephant Island , Shishkov Island and in Admiralty Bay – King George Island ). Three genera of L3 larval nematodes were identified: Anisakis sp., Contracaecum spp. and Pseudoterranova decipiens. The infection level was higher on the shelf around the islands than in Admiralty Bay . This is explained by a higher abundance of the final hosts in the region. A comparison of the infection data from 1978/79 and 2007/2008 with data from 1994/96 (Palm et al. 1998, 2007) was done. The parameters of infection of Notothenia coriiceps and Lepidonotothen nudifrons by Pseudoterranova decipiens were decreasing within the 30 years period.