Black Rockcod

N. coriiceps members have scales that typically appear brown or gray in color. Its teeth consist of a multi-row tooth plate and caniform teeth, which are located in the outer portion of the jaw. Adults males typically reach a length of approximately 50 cm (20 in). Like many other notothenioid fishes, it lacks a swim bladder. Bone density increases during maturation, resulting in reduced buoyancy and the transition from pelagic to demersal swimming behavior. Adults N. coriiceps possess a dense, well-developed skeleton compared to its congener Notothenia rossii, accounting for its reduced buoyancy. Its epithelium is characterized by the presence of fat droplets, which serve as a storage mechanism for dietary lipids. Fat droplets are also stored in bone tissue.

N. coriiceps maintains a circum-Antarctic distribution that is likely governed at least in part by the presence of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) as well as its egg dispersal patterns. Populations of this species have been recorded at sites in the western Ross Sea, the Weddell Sea, the Western Antarctic Peninsula, the islands of the Scotia Arc to South Georgia, the Balleny Islands, and the sub-Antarctic islands of the Indian Ocean sector. N. coriiceps feeds on macroalgae amphipods and euphausiids. It appears to feed year-round, although diet composition likely varies seasonally.