Studies on food and fecundity of Notothenia gibberifrons Lönnberg, 1905 (Pisces, Notothenioidea) off South Georgia

Abstract

The food of sympatric, immature and mature (longer than 37.5 cm l.t.) individuals of Notothenia gibberifrons is very diversified, the most important items being the Polychaeta, Euphausia superba, the Isopoda, and the Echinodermata. Ovaries of mature individuals contain two generations of eggs differing in their size and stage of development. The absolute fecundity (large eggs of the older generation considered only) was found to range from 26.349 to 113.436. The relative fecundity ranged within 33.91-101.66 eggs/g with a mean of 73.8 ±18.667 eggs/g.;