I think this looks like a tasty morsel. Cod is an excellent fish. These biotech researchers in Australia though seem to have gotten off the track a little bit don’t you think? I’ve tried to keep this a very clean site and stay away from the “s” word but this story is too good to pass up.

Victorian scientists have revealed the once thought monogamous Australian fish, the Murray cod could be playing the field. Minister for Innovation, John Brumby, said while Murray cod were commonly believed to be monogamous, a study of the fish larvae genes has shown that some cod were polygamous with pairings of two females and one male discovered in several captive spawnings.

Announcing the surprising findings today at the Agricultural Biotechnology International Conference (ABIC) in Melbourne today, Mr Brumby said scientists from Department of Primary Industries (DPI) had made the discovery. “The more we know about the Murray cod, including its sex life, the better we will be able to manage the population levels as well as develop its export potential,” Mr Brumby said.

Oh my gosh. I had no idea. Fascinating. How is biotechnology involved? The “the study is just one component of a larger project which is utilising advanced gene marker and reproduction technologies to enable the development of selective breeding programs for the production of bigger, more colourful and healthier cod for aquaculture purposes.”