The Trout cod (Maccullochella macquariensis) is a freshwater fish found in the Murray-Darling river system in south eastern Australia. It is also called the blue nose cod and the rock cod. It is neither very closely related to trout nor a true cod, but a member of the order Perciformes. Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascideiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ... Families many, see text The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, include about 40% of all fish and are the largest order of vertebrates. ... Genera Bathysphyraenops (disputed) Bostockia Coreoperca Edelia Gadopsis Guyu Howella Lateolabrax Maccullochella Macquaria Nannatherina Nannoperca Percichthys Siniperca The Family Percichthyidae are known as the Temperate perches. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is a standard convention used for naming species. ... Georges Cuvier Baron Georges Léopold Chrétien Frédéric Dagobert Cuvier (August 23, 1769 - May 13, 1832) was a French naturalist and zoologist. ... For the village on the Isle of Wight, see Freshwater, Isle of Wight. ... Groups Conodonta Hyperoartia Petromyzontidae (lampreys) Pteraspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Thelodonti Anaspida Cephalaspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Galeaspida Pituriaspida Osteostraci Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) Placodermi Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish) Acanthodii Osteichthyes (bony fish) Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish) Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish) Actinistia (coelacanths) Dipnoi (lungfish) A fish is a poikilothermic (cold-blooded)* water-dwelling... Semi-arid grazing country near Burra Creek, South Australia The Murray-Darling Basin drains one-seventh of Australia and is by far the most significant agricultural area on that continent. ... Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) Trout is the common name given to a number of species of freshwater fishes belonging to the salmon family, Salmonidae. ... Species Gadus morhua Gadus macrocephalus Gadus ogac This article is about codfish; for other meanings, see COD. Cod is the common name for the genus Gadus of fish, belonging to the family Gadidae, and is also used in the common name of a variety of other fishes. ... Families many, see text The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, include about 40% of all fish and are the largest order of vertebrates. ...

The Trout Cod may grow up to 80 cm and 16 kg, but there are unconfirmed anecdotal accounts of larger specimens. It is very similar in appearance to the Murray Cod, M. peelii peelii. It has a light, greyish "dirty-looking" ventral surface with generally blue-grey to dark brown colouration across the lateral and dorsal surfaces overlaid with a speckled pattern of dark grey to black spots. These speckles reduce in intensity or are missing over the head and the base colouration intensifies in this area. Most specimens have a horizontal line through the eye which can be indistinct, broken into irregular sections or be very marked and almost jet black. The dorsal fin has a spined section partially separated by a notch from the anterior soft-rayed section. Anterior dorsal, caudal and anal fins are dark grey to black with white edges identical to Murray cod. Ventral fins are translucent and the pelvic fins are dark grey, carried well forward with the leading, white coloured ray extended to form a bifurcated filament. Trout cod have a more pointed snout compared to Murray cod and have an overhanging upper jaw. Overall conformation and colouration of the fins and body form are otherwise identical to Murray cod. Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ...

Although there is substantial overlap in range, Trout Cod are essentially a specialised upland form of Murray cod. This is a relatively common phenomena in native fish genera of the Murray-Darling and East Coast systems with other notable pairs being (lowland - upland): Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Semi-arid grazing country near Burra Creek, South Australia The Murray-Darling Basin drains one-seventh of Australia and is by far the most significant agricultural area on that continent. ...

Golden perch (Macquaria ambiguau) - Macquarie perch (Macquaria australasica); Binomial name Macquaria ambigua Golden Perch (Macquaria ambigua) An australian native freshwater fish, primarily of lowland reaches of the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) river system, but also known to push some way into upland reaches as well. ... Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ...

Estuary perch (Macquaria colonorum) - Australian bass (Macquaria novemaculeata); Binomial name Macquaria colonorum Estuary Perch (Macquaria colonorum) A species very similiar to Australian bass with that: they have slightly larger mouth and more scooped forehead they remain in the estuarine reaches or (more rarely) extreme lower freshwater reaches have a diet with more emphasis on small fish and prawns... Binomial name Macquaria novemaculeata (Steindachner, 1866) The Australian Bass, Macquaria novemaculeata is a species of fish in the family Percichthyidae that occurs in coastal waterways along the east coast of Australia, from east of Wilsons Promontory in Victoria east and north along the eastern seaboard to the rivers and...

River blackfish (gadopsis marmoratus) - Two-spined blackfish (Gadopsis bispinosis); and, Binomial name Gadopsis marmoratus Richardson, 1848 The River Blackfish, Gadopsis marmoratus is an Australian freshwater perch. ... Binomial name Gadopsis bispinosus Two-spined Blackfish (Gadopsis marmoratus) are a speciated, more specialised upland variant of River Blackfish. ...

Flathead galaxias (Galaxias rostratus) - Mountain Galaxias species complex (Galaxias spp.). Binomial name Galaxias rostratus Flathead Galaxias (Galaxias rostratus) A little-known Galaxias found in lowland rivers and streams and associated billabongs, backwaters, etc of the southern Murray-Darling river system. ... Binomial name Galaxias sp. ...

Trout Cod are often found close to cover and in relatively fast currents and in cooler waters than Murray cod. Their diet is essentially the same as Murray cod with adjustment made for size, eating mainly other fishes, freshwater mussells, crustaceans, aquatic insects, small mammals and water fowl. Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Classes Class Branchiopoda Subclass Phyllopoda Subclass Sarsostraca Class Remipedia Order Enantiopoda Order Nectiopoda Class Cephalocarida Order Brachypoda Class Maxillopoda Subclass Mystacocarida Subclass Copepoda Subclass Branchiura Subclass Pentastomida Subclass Tantulocarida Subclass Thecostraca Infraclass Cirripedia Class Ostracoda Order Metacopina Subclass Myodocopa Subclass Podocopa Class Malacostraca Subclass Eumalacostraca Subclass Hoplocarida Subclass Phyllocarida The... Classes & Orders Subclass: Apterygota Orders Archaeognatha (Bristletails) Thysanura (Silverfish) Monura - extinct Subclass: Pterygota Orders Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Diaphanopteroidea - extinct Palaeodictyoptera - extinct Megasecoptera - extinct Archodonata - extinct Infraclass: Neoptera Orders Blattodea (cockroaches) Isoptera (termites) Mantodea (mantids) Dermaptera (earwigs) Plecoptera (stoneflies) Orthoptera (grasshoppers, etc) Phasmatodea (walking sticks) Embioptera (webspinners) Zoraptera... Orders Subclass Monotremata Monotremata Subclass Marsupialia Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Notoryctemorphia Diprotodontia Subclass Placentalia Xenarthra Dermoptera Desmostylia Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals primarily characterized by the presence of mammary...

Trout Cod reach sexual maturity at 3-5 years. Spawing of Trout Cod has never been observed in the wild and is not well understood. It is believed to be eseentially the same as Murray cod but occurs about three weeks earlier and at significantly lower temperatures in waters shared by the two species. Trout Cod are believed to spawn at temperatures as low as 16 degrees in upland rivers, using rocks as a spawning substrate; these are clear adaption to cool, rocky upland river habitats. Unlike Murray cod Trout Cod will not breed in captivity in earthen dams. Artificial breeding programs being conducted for the species recovery use hormone injections to induce ovulation in naturally ripe fish in spring. Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ...

Trout Cod were once quite abundant, but are now gravely threatened by overfishing, environmental factors and introduced Trout species and are listed as endangered. The species is now totally protected. Only one wild, naturally occuring Trout Cod population remains in the Murray River in a region where the river is basically an extended transition zone from upland river habitat to lowland river habitat. It is worth noting that introduced Trout species are absent from this stretch of river.

Historical records leave us in no doubt Trout Cod (and Macquarie Perch) occurred in most of the larger upland rivers and streams in the south-east corner of the Murray-Darling river system, and that these upland river habitats were their primary habitats. The extinction of Trout Cod populations in every one of its upland river habitats is an unresolved issue. Contrary to popular belief, many of these upland rivers still contain signficant stretches of unregulated, high quality habitat. It is almost certain that the main reason for the Trout Cod's extinction in its upland river habitats, and its current endangered status, is the complete domination of every one of its upland river habitats by introduced Trout species, which are aggressive, predatory fish. There is very strong historical, biological, anecdotal evidence and circumstantial evidence to support this. Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ... Semi-arid grazing country near Burra Creek, South Australia The Murray-Darling Basin drains one-seventh of Australia and is by far the most significant agricultural area on that continent. ...

Every single larger upland river and stream in south-eastern Australia is dominated by introduced Trout species (Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout), with many having been continually stocked with introduced Trout species for more than a century. Many are still continually stocked with introduced Trout species despite the presence of endangered upland native fish species. Not a single larger upland river or stream in south-eastern Australia has been reserved in a Trout-free state for larger upland native fish species. The effects of these constant liberations of introduced Trout species have been stark. Catastrophic events such as drought or bushfire, after which introduced Trout species were restocked but upland native fish were not restocked, have shifted the balance further. The net result is that a number of upland native fish species including Trout Cod and Macquarie Perch have completely died out or nearly so in their upland river habitats in the wild, unable to cope with massive predation on their larvae/juveniles by introduced Trout species and unable to cope with massive competition from introduced Trout species for food and habitat at all life stages. Binomial name Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum, 1792 The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss, a. ... Binomial name Salmo trutta Linnaeus, 1758 Subspecies Salmo trutta fario Salmo trutta trutta The Brown Trout (Salmo trutta fario) and the Sea Trout (Salmo trutta trutta) are fish distinguished chiefly by the fact that the Brown Trout is largely a freshwater fish, while the Sea Trout shows anadromous reproduction, spawning... Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ...

The New South Wales Fisheries Department has acknowledged predation on juvenile Trout Cod by introduced Trout species in recent literature. Several publications in the 1940s through to the 1960s by an officer (A.D.Butcher) in the Victorian Fisheries and Game Department documents predation on juvenile Trout Cod, Macquarie Perch and other upland native fish species by introduced Trout species. Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ...

Scientific studies to document and quantify the impacts of introduced Trout on Trout Cod and Macquarie Perch are needed. Given the strong cultural cringe towards introduced Trout in the wider community and the management bias towards introduced Trout amongst fishery agencies these studies may be some way off. Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ...

It is likely that Trout Cod and Macquarie Perch will remain endangered until they are provided with sizeable, Trout-free upland river habitats. This appears to be a nettle that no fishery or conservation agency is prepared to grasp, again due to strong cultural cringe towards introduced Trout in the wider community and the management bias towards introduced Trout amongst fishery agencies. Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ...

In the meantime the fishermen of south-eastern Australia are missing out on a unique part of their heritage; a beautiful native fish that was vastly superior in sporting and fighting qualities to introduced Trout species and that their forefathers raved about.

(Some) References

Butcher, A.D. 1945. The food of indigenous and non-indigenous freshwater fish in Victoria, with special reference to [introduced] Trout. Fisheries Pamphlet 2. Fisheries and Wildlife Department, Victoria.

Butcher, A.D. 1967. A changing aquatic fauna in a changing environment. IUCN Publications, New Series 9: 197-218.

Cadwallader, P.L. (ed.) 1977. J.O. Langtry's 1949-50 Murray River Investigations. Fisheries and Wildlife Paper. Ministry for Conservation, Victoria.

Cadwallader, P.L. 1979. Distribution of native and introduced fish in the Seven Creeks river system, Victoria. Australian Journal of Ecology 4: 361-385.

Cadwallader, P.L. & Gooley, G. 1984. Past and present distributions and translocations of Murray Cod and Trout Cod in Victoria. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 96,1: 33-43.

Merrick, J.R. & Schmida, G.E. 1984. Australian Freshwater Fishes; Biology and Management. Griffin Press, Australia.

Rhodes, J.O. 1999. Heads and Tales: Recollections of a Fisheries and Wildlife Officer. The Australian Deer Research Foundation Ltd, Melbourne.

Trueman, W. and Luker, C. 1992. Fishing Yesteryear. Freshwater Fishing Australia Magazine 17: 34-38.

External links

• Native Fish Australia - trout cod page