Merluccius merluccius

Cladus: Eukaryota
Supergroup: Opisthokonta
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Osteichthyes
Classis: Actinopterygii
Subclassis: Neopterygii
Infraclassis: Teleostei
Superordo: Paracanthopterygii
Ordo: Gadiformes
Familia: Merlucciidae
Genus: Merluccius
Species: Merluccius merluccius

Vernacular names
Internationalization
Ελληνικά: Μπακαλιάρος
Hrvatski: Oslić
Türkçe: Berlam, Barlam

The European hake (Merluccius merluccius) is a merluccid hake of the genus Merluccius, found in the Mediterranean Sea, the North Sea and the eastern Atlantic Ocean between Iceland and Mauritania. It is a night predator which during the day stays on sandy or muddy abyssal plains, at depths usually between 30 and 400 m, although it has been found at depths up to 1000 meters. Its can reach a length of about 140 cm, with a weight up to 15 kg.

The young feed on crustaceans, but as they grow they start to feed on small and medium-sized fish and cephalopods. The adult show cannibalism.

References

* Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2009). "Merluccius merluccius" in FishBase. January 2009 version.