Massachusetts State Fish
Atlantic Cod (common name) Gadus morhua (scientific name) Overview The Atlantic cod has been one of the most important fish to humans in history. Once plentiful across the North Atlantic and a staple food throughout Europe and the Americas, severe over-fishing has reduced populations to their lowest levels since 1960. Cod have spotted brownish, green, or gray backs and flanks, with white bellies. They are easily distinguished from other fish by their snout-like heads, prominent whiskers ("barbel"), and distinctive fins. Atlantic cod migrate in several different patterns, but generally move in large schools from wintering areas in deep waters to spawning grounds nearer to shore in summer. Larger fish live in colder waters and at lower depths. Close-up STATUS Unofficial PHYSICAL DETAILS Length: Up to 79 in (200 cm) Weight: Up to 211 lbs (96 kg); average of 66 lbs (30 kg) LIFESPAN Up to 25 years HABITAT Range: The western range is in the North Atlantic Ocean from western Greenland in the north to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the south. In the eastern Atlantic Ocean, cod are found from the Barents Sea above Scandinavia to the Bay of Biscay off the Iberian Peninsula. Cod are most abundant in the Barents Sea and in the Georges Bank, along the coast of northern Labrador, to Nantucket Island. Water type: Saltwater Water temp: 30-50°F (1-10°C) Elevation: Down to 658 ft (200 m) but able to live at depths of up to 2,000 ft (600 m). Conservation Status: Vulnerable DIET Bottom-dwelling cod feed on small crustaceans (shrimp, snow crab, lobsters), mollusks (clams, cockles, mussels), sea urchins, fish (herring, capelin, shad, mackerel, silver hake, young haddock, smelt), and very occasionally ducks. REPRODUCTION Fertilization: External Spawning frequency: November to December Mating behavior: Distinct pairing Egg laying: Both sexes usually reproduce for the first time at five or six years old. The female cod can lay as many as nine million fertilized eggs near the sea floor, where the eggs float freely. USES Commercial fish, fertilizer, game fish, aquaculture OTHER NAMES Cod, codling, haberdine, baccala TRIVIA Massachusetts' Cape Cod was named in honor of this fish in 1602. A model of the "sacred cod" hangs in the Massachusetts statehouse in recognition of the importance of the Atlantic cod to the lives of the state’s early European settlers and its status as one of the state’s most valuable commodities. By 1992, the cod was virtually extinct off the eastern Canadian coast and portions of the cod’s spawning grounds were placed off-limits for commercial fishing operations.
	Click to enlarge an image Cod Cod in Background Cod Liver Oil Is Processed from This Fish Cod Fillets Main Ingredient in Fish and Chips CLASSIFICATION Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Sub-Class: Osteichthyes Order: Gadiformes Family: Gadidae Genus: Gadus Species: G. morhua
	Raw Data Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Author: World Trade Press