Arctic Cisco

(Coregonus autumnalis), a fish of the family Salmonidae. The arctic cisco is a migratory fish that feeds in the littoral waters of the Arctic Ocean and ascends the rivers east of Pechora (except the Ob’ River) and the rivers of Alaska and Canada to spawn. The fish is up to 64 cm long and weighs up to 3 kg. In the sea it feeds on large benthic crustaceans, fry, and small zooplankton. The arctic cisco spawns in the autumn. It is fished commercially in Siberian rivers.

The subspecies C. a. migratorius, which is made up of three races, usually weighs 1–1.5 kg (sometimes up to 7 kg). It feeds primarily on pelagic crustaceans, benthic invertebrates, and fry. It spawns in rivers from September to November. The subspecies is of great commercial importance, but its numbers have sharply decreased.