Abstract:
Plankton sampling in Gerlache Inlet in the 06-07 season collected large numbers of larvae of the Antarctic ice fish Pleuragramma antarcticum. Samples of Pleuragramma eggs and recently hatched larvae were collected the following season by drilling 25 cm holes through the sea ice in a grid centered around 74° 38.762'S, 164° 11.917' E. Eggs were removed from the ice overflowing from the holes and/or scooped from the slush filling the hole with a dip-net. Hatched pelagic stage larvae were collected using 100m vertical hauls on a 3x3 spatial grid with samples taken approximately 100m apart. Samples of both eggs and larvae were sorted and fixed in molecular grade ethanol for later microsatellite analysis.
