View source for Greenland cod

{{Short description|Species of fish}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Greenland cod
| image= Voyages de la Commission scientifique du Nord, en Scandinavie, en Laponie, au Spitzberg et aux Feröe - no-nb digibok 2009040611001-99.jpg
| taxon = Gadus ogac
| authority = [[John Richardson (naturalist)|J. Richardson]], 1836
}}
The '''Greenland cod''' ('''''Gadus ogac'''''), commonly known also as '''ogac''', is a species of [[Actinopterygii|ray-finned fish]] in the cod family, [[Gadidae]]. Genetic analysis has shown that it may be the same species as the [[Pacific cod]] (''Gadus macrocephalus'').<ref name="carr-1999"/> It is a bottom-dwelling fish and is found on the [[continental shelf]] in the [[Arctic Ocean]] and northwestern [[Atlantic Ocean]], its range extending from Alaska to West Greenland, then southwards along the Canadian coast to the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Cape Breton Island. It is a commercially harvested food fish,<ref name=FishBase>{{FishBase |genus=Gadus |species=ogac |year=2005 |month=October}}</ref><ref name=FAO/> but landings have been greatly reduced in recent years.

==Taxonomy==
Molecular genetic analyses strongly suggest that Greenland cod is not different from [[Pacific cod]], ''Gadus macrocephalus'' - ''Gadus ogac'' is then a [[junior synonym]] of ''G. macrocephalus''.<ref name="carr-1999">{{Cite journal | last1 = Carr | first1 = S. M. | last2 = Kivlichan | first2 = D. S. | last3 = Pepin | first3 = P. | last4 = Crutcher | first4 = D. C. | title = Molecular systematics of gadid fishes: Implications for the biogeographic origins of Pacific species | doi = 10.1139/z98-194 | journal = Canadian Journal of Zoology | volume = 77 | pages = 19–26 | year = 1999 }}</ref> [[ITIS]] and the [[Catalogue of Life]] list ''Gadus ogac'' as synonym of ''G. macrocephalus''.<ref>Catalogue of Life: ''[https://www.catalogueoflife.org/data/taxon/6JV2L Gadus macrocephalus]''.</ref>

==Description==
[[File:Greenland cod 2024.jpg|thumb|A freshly caught Greenland cod.]]
In colour the Greenland cod is generally sombre, ranging from tan to brown to silvery. Its appearance is similar to that of other [[cod]] species; generally heavy-bodied, elongate, usually with a stout [[caudal peduncle]].<ref name=FAO/> They can grow to a length of 77&nbsp;cm.<ref name=FishBase/>

They are bottom fishes inhabiting inshore waters and [[Continental shelf|continental shelves]], up to depths of 200 m. Their range covers the [[Arctic Ocean]] and Northwest [[Atlantic Ocean]] from [[Alaska]] to West [[Greenland]], then south along the [[Canada|Canadian]] coast to the [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]] and [[Cape Breton Island]] generally from [[45th parallel north|45]] to [[75th parallel north|75 degrees north]].<ref name=FAO/>

The stock of Greenland cod has been strongly reduced in recent years.<ref name=FAO/>

==Fisheries==
[[File:Fisheries capture of Gadus ogac.png|thumb|300px|left|{{center|Global capture of Greenland cod in tonnes reported by the [[FAO]], 1950–2010<ref name=FAO>[http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2219/en ''Gadus ogac'' (Richardson, 1836) ] FAO, Species Fact Sheet. Retrieved April 2012.</ref>}}]]

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== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Hamilton LC, Brown BC and Rasmussen RO (2003) [http://pubpages.unh.edu/~lch/Greenland_Arctic.pdf "West Greenland’s Cod-to-Shrimp Transition: Local Dimensions of Climatic Change"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510181139/http://pubpages.unh.edu/~lch/Greenland_Arctic.pdf |date=2013-05-10 }} ''Arctic'', '''56''' (3): 271–282.
* Roe P (2012) [http://www.natur.gl/fileadmin/user_files/Dokumenter/Afhandlinger/Per_Roe_2012_Master_thesis.pdf "Growth variability in Atlantic cod (''Gadus morhua'') near its northern range of distribution"] Master thesis, Aarhus University.
* Therkildsen NO, Hemmer‐Hansen J, Wisz MS, Pampoulie C, Meldrup D, Bonanomi S, Retze A, Olsen SM and Nielsen EE (2013) [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/eva.12055/full "Spatiotemporal SNP analysis reveals pronounced biocomplexity at the northern range margin of Atlantic cod ''Gadus morhua''"] ''Evolutionary Applications'', '''6''' (4): 690–705.

==External links==
* [http://sciencenordic.com/dna-test-rewrites-history-greenland-cod DNA test rewrites history of Greenland cod] ''ScienceNordic'', 30 March 2013.

{{cod topics}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1028412}}

[[Category:Gadus]]
[[Category:Fish of the Arctic Ocean]]
[[Category:Greenlandic cuisine]]
[[Category:Fish described in 1836]]


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