Distribution and abundance of eelpouts (Pisces, Zoarcidae) off West Greenland

Nesting behavior of greater eelpout (Lycodes esmarkii), identified through a predation event by spotted wolffish (Anarhichas minor)

The stomach of a spotted wolffish (Anarhichas minor) caught in Icelandic waters was found to contain ~727 greater eelpout larvae (Lycodes esmarkii). All the larvae were of similar size and at a similar state of digestion, indicating they were all consumed together. The likely explanation for this observation is that greater eelpout lay their eggs in a nest, with the larvae remaining in the nest for a short period after hatching. The larvae were then predated upon by the spotted wolffish while still in the nest. This study sheds new light on greater eelpout in Icelandic waters, with recently hatched larvae being present in March, breeding at a depth of ~200-250 m, and likely exhibiting nesting behavior, which has not previously been documented.

Checklist of marine and estuarine fishes from the AlaskaYukon Border, Beaufort Sea, to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

This paper is a checklist of the fishes that have been documented, through both published and unpublished sources, in marine and estuarine waters, and out 200 miles, from the United States-Canadian border on the Beaufort Sea to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. A minimum of 241 families and 1,644 species are known within this range, including both native and nonnative species. For each of these species, we include maximum size, geographic and depth ranges, whether it is native or nonnative, as well as a brief mention of any taxonomic issues.

Phylogeny of the eelpout genus Lycodes (Pisces, Zoarcidae) as inferred from mitochondrial cytochrome b and 12S rDNA

The bottom-dwelling and species-rich eelpout genus Lycodes Reinhardt has a great potential for the study of Arctic marine speciation. Subdivision of the genus has been based on single or few morphological characters (e.g., lateral line configuration) with contradicting results and phylogenetic approaches have not been attended. Here we present the first phylogenetic analysis of the genus employing DNA sequences of the mitochondrial genes cytochrome b and 12S rDNA (714 bp). The analysis with the two genes combined resulted in two equally parsimonious trees. In both cladograms most of the previously suggested subgroups are para- or polyphyletic, except for the so-called short-tailed Lycodes spp., with a short tail, a single mediolateral lateral line configuration and a shallow or filled otolith sulcus. The group of long-tailed Lycodes spp., with ventral or ventro-medio-lateral types of lateral line configuration and a deep otolith sulcus, appears to be paraphyletic, since Pacific and Atlantic species in this group are not each other's closest relatives. Thus, the short-tailed species are placed in a derived clade, indicating a secondary shortening of the tail, and a "slope to shore" type of evolution. This is not in accordance with earlier assumptions of the more elongate, deeper living species being the more derived. The basal position of long-tailed Pacific species supports earlier theories of Pacific origin of the genus/family. Small genetic differences between Arctic/Atlantic species indicate a rather recent radiation in these areas after the opening of the Bering Strait 3.0-3.5 million years ago.