Micromesistius poutassou (Risso, 1827)

Blue whiting

Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Classification	Actinopterygii \| Gadiformes \| Gadidae
Synonyms	Merlangus poutassou, Boreogadus poutassou, Gadus poutassou, ... more
Common names	... more

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Image of Micromesistius poutassou (Blue whiting)

Picture by Østergaard, T.

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AquaMaps Data sources: GBIF OBIS

Main reference

Cohen, D.M., T. Inada, T. Iwamoto and N. Scialabba. 1990. (Ref. 1371)
Other references | Biblio | Coordinator | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 50.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); common length : 22.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); max. published weight: 830 g (Ref. 40637); max. reported age: 20 years (Ref. 1371)

Length at first maturity

L_m 19.06, range 23 - ? cm

Environment

Bathypelagic; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); marine; depth range 150 - 3000 m (Ref. 3663), usually 300 - 400 m

Climate / Range

Temperate; 79°N - 26°N, 82°W - 51°E (Ref. 1371)

Northeast Atlantic: Barents Sea south through the eastern Norwegian Sea, around Iceland, then in the western Mediterranean, and south along the African coast to Cape Bojador. Northwest Atlantic: southern Greenland and off southeast Canada and the northeastern coast of the USA.
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 24 - 28; Anal soft rays: 33 - 39. Dorsal fins widely spaced, interspace between second and third fins longer than base length of first dorsal fin. Lateral line continuous over whole body. Color is blue-gray dorsally, grading to white ventrally. Sometimes with a small black blotch at the base of the pectoral fin.

Found over the continental slope and shelf to more than 1000 m, but more common at 300-400 m. Feeds mostly on small crustaceans but large individuals also prey on small fish and cephalopods. Makes daily vertical migrations: surface waters at night and near the bottom during the day. Sold fresh and frozen, and also processed as oil and fishmeal (Ref. 1371).


IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 57073)	Threat to humans
Not Evaluated	Harmless

Human uses
Fisheries: highly commercial


More information
Countries FAO areas Ecosystems Occurrences Introductions Ecology Diet Food items Food consumption Ration	Common names Synonyms Metabolism Predators Ecotoxicology Reproduction Maturity Spawning Eggs Egg development	Age/Size Growth Length-weight Length-length Length-frequencies Morphometrics Morphology Larvae Larval dynamics Recruitment	Other references Biblio Aquaculture Aquaculture profile Strains Genetics Allele frequencies Heritability Diseases Processing	Collaborators Pictures Stamps Sounds Ciguatera Speed Swim. type Gill area Otoliths Brains Vision

Tools
Biogeographic modelling \| E-book \| Field guide \| Identification keys \| Length-frequency wizard \| Life-history tool \| Point map

Special reports
Check for Aquarium maintenance \| Check for Species Fact Sheets \| Check for Aquaculture Fact Sheets

Download XML
Summary page \| Point data \| Common names \| Photos

Internet sources

Estimation of some characteristics with mathematical models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805)

PD₅₀ = 0.7500

Resilience (Ref. 69278)

Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.18-0.22; tm=1-5; tmax=20; Fec=6000)


Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)	Price category (Ref. 80766)
Low to moderate vulnerability (33 of 100)	Low

Entered by Froese, Rainer

Modified by Kesner-Reyes, Kathleen

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Page last modified by : celloran, 20 January 2010

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