Microsatellite analysis reveals genetic differentiation between year-classes in the icefish Chaenocephalus aceratus at South Shetlands and Elephant Island

Chaenocephalus aceratus is one of the most abundant Antarctic icefish species in the Atlantic sector and has been a by-catch species in the fishery for mackerel icefish, Champsocephalus gunnari, between the mid-1970s and mid-1980s at South Georgia, South Orkney, and South Shetland Islands. The speci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar Biology
Main Authors: PAPETTI, CHIARA, PATARNELLO, TOMASO, ZANE, LORENZO, SUSANA E, LA MESA M, KOCK KH
Other Authors: Papetti, Chiara, Susana, E, LA MESA, M, Kock, Kh, Patarnello, Tomaso, Zane, Lorenzo
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: SPRINGER, 233 SPRING STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10013 USA 2007
Subjects:
Microsatellite
Age classe
Antarctic Fish
Population structure
Antarctic
Elephant Island
South Shetland Islands
Antarc*
Icefish
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11577/1777335
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-007-0325-8
Description
Summary:Chaenocephalus aceratus is one of the most abundant Antarctic icefish species in the Atlantic sector and has been a by-catch species in the fishery for mackerel icefish, Champsocephalus gunnari, between the mid-1970s and mid-1980s at South Georgia, South Orkney, and South Shetland Islands. The species became the target of the fishery in particular seasons, such as at South Georgia in 1977/78. In our paper, we report results on genetic differentiation for 11 microsatellite loci in C. aceratus samples collected at the South Shetlands and Elephant Island. This study represents the first report on microsatellite variability of an icefish species. Our results support the evidence from previous studies on differences in infestation patterns of parasites that a single panmictic population of C. aceratus exists, spanning the two sampling sites separated by about 100 km. Moreover, our study indicates the presence of a significant genetic differentiation between individual year-classes pointing out the existence of dynamic processes acting at the population genetic level, according to recent results for broadly distributed marine species. Both small effective population size and immigration from unsampled differentiated stocks may be at the base of the differentiation found in C. aceratus.

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