Hakes

This family

Images coming soon.

BODY moderately elongate, covered with small, smooth, deciduous scales; head elongate, depressed and pike-like; mouth terminal, with strong teeth; no barbels; dorsal fins 2, a short anterior and a long posterior one; a long anal fin. This family contains a single genus with about 4 species, large cod-like fishes of voracious habits, inhabiting moderate depths in northern seas. Merluccius merluccius is the common European hake which strays to Greenland. M. bilinearis, the silver hake, New England hake, or whiting, is common from Newfoundland to Cape Cod, and south to the Bahamas in deep water. It is of considerable food-value.

The remaining species in our waters is M. productus, which occurs on our Pacific Coast from Santa Catalina to Puget Sound; everywhere abundant and used as food, but it is of coarse and watery texture.