If your habitat is the freezing waters of Antarctica, you had best be equipped with the evolutionary tools to survive these harsh climates. Hailing from the Channichthyidae family of white-blooded fish, the Icefish has a few of these up its scaly sleeve.

For a start, just like many fish in the Southern Ocean, the icefish can produce antifreeze proteins to prevent ice crystals from forming in their blood when ocean temperatures drop below freezing. Plus, the high oxygen content in the cold Antarctic waters actually work to the Icefish’s advantage, allowing it to survive with far lower amounts of haemoglobin – the protein that carries oxygen to the rest of the body – than most other fish.

‍