Molva molva, Ling : fisheries, gamefish

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Molva molva (Linnaeus, 1758)

Ling
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Molva molva   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Molva molva
Picture by Svensen, E.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Gadiformes (Cods) > Lotidae (Hakes and burbots)
Etymology: More on author: Linnaeus.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; demersal; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 100 - 1000 m (Ref. 35388), usually 100 - 400 m (Ref. 35388). Temperate; 75°N - 35°N, 55°W - 44°E (Ref. 54595)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Northwest Atlantic: off southern Greenland and Canada. Northeast Atlantic: Barents Sea and Iceland to Morocco. Mediterranean Sea: northwestern Mediterranean only.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 92.5, range 90 - 100 cm
Max length : 200 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); common length : 106 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); max. published weight: 45.0 kg (Ref. 35388); max. reported age: 25 years (Ref. 35388)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 75-83; Anal soft rays: 58 - 64; Vertebrae: 63 - 65. Upper jaw projecting beyond lower one. Color is reddish brown dorsally, grading to white ventrally. The posterior areas of the vertical fins dark with pale margins. The sides distinctly marbled (Ref. 232). Barbel is present in the chin, longer than the diameter of the eye. Black spot in the rear end of the first dorsal fin. Caudal peduncle stout compared to blue ling (Ref. 35388).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Occurs mainly on rocky bottoms in fairly deep water (Ref. 9988). Found more commonly from 100 to 400 m. Feeds on fish (cod, herring, flatfish), lobsters, cephalopods and starfishes. Principal spawning areas are Biscay, slopes west of the British Isles and off the Faeroes and southern Iceland (Ref. 35388). Marketed fresh, dried or salted and frozen; eaten steamed, fried, broiled and baked (Ref. 9988).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Major spawning grounds are located at 200 m depth from the Bay of Biscay to the Gulf of Norway at 100 to 300 m off southern Iceland, and at 50 to 300 m in the Mediterranean Sea. Fecundity may reach 20 to 60 million eggs per female (Ref. 1371).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Cohen, D.M., T. Inada, T. Iwamoto and N. Scialabba, 1990. FAO species catalogue. Vol. 10. Gadiform fishes of the world (Order Gadiformes). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of cods, hakes, grenadiers and other gadiform fishes known to date. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(10). Rome: FAO. 442 p. (Ref. 1371)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)


CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: highly commercial; gamefish: yes
FAO - Fisheries: landings, species profile; Publication: search | FIRMS - Stock assessments | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Common names
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Metabolism
Predators
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Reproduction
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Fecundity
Eggs
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References
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Fisheries: landings, species profile; Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 4.6 - 11.3, mean 7.7 °C (based on 438 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.6250   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00389 (0.00241 - 0.00628), b=3.06 (2.92 - 3.20), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  4.4   ±0.2 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.12; tm=5-6; tmax=25; Fec=60 million).
Prior r = 0.51, 95% CL = 0.34 - 0.77, Based on 7 stock assessments.
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Very high vulnerability (77 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649):  Moderate vulnerability (38 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Low.
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 15.2 [7.4, 33.3] mg/100g; Iron = 0.278 [0.140, 0.600] mg/100g; Protein = 17.7 [15.9, 19.4] %; Omega3 = 0.368 [0.197, 0.685] g/100g; Selenium = 32.5 [16.9, 66.3] μg/100g; VitaminA = 8.35 [2.10, 31.25] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.28 [0.18, 0.44] mg/100g (wet weight);