In fact, in the genus burbot (lat. Lota) there is only one species, and it is found exclusively in fresh water. However, there is a marine fish that looks very similar to this freshwater inhabitant. Its official name is menek (lat. Brosme brosme), but along with this it is also called sea burbot. Scientifically, this is fundamentally wrong, but quite common among fishermen.
Menek: what kind of fish is this?
Menek is a large ray-finned fish that lives in the northern waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Like common burbot, it belongs to the cod family (lat. Gadidae), but, unlike other representatives of the taxon, it has only one dorsal fin.
Menek is an inhabitant of deep sea waters. The commercial value of this fish is very small despite its large size and high nutritional value. The maximum size of one individual reaches 120 cm, and weight - 30 kg. However, burbots rarely growup to that size. Most of the minnows have a length of 50 to 95 cm, and a weight of about 12 kg. Females are usually larger than males.
What does a burbot that lives in the sea look like
Menek has a strongly elongated body, covered with small light yellow scales. The color on the back is darker than on the belly. The lateral line runs along the entire body from the head to the caudal peduncle, where it becomes discontinuous. In the area of the anus, it bends, wrapping down.
A distinctive feature of sea burbot from other cod fish is the presence of only one dorsal fin, which is quite long and stretches along the entire back, partially connecting with a shorter caudal fin. The latter is remarkable for its rounded shape and has from 62 to 77 soft rays. In the dorsal fin, their number is 85-107.
The strongly elongated body of the little fish gives it some resemblance to an eel, but the sea burbot is much shorter and thicker than the latter. The spine of this fish has from 63 to 66 links. From head to tail, the body of the small wedge-shaped narrows. There is a mustache under the chin of the fish.
The ventral fins of the sea burbot are quite wide and have a rounded shape; the ventral fins lack an elongated ray. The dorsal and anal fins are separated from each other by a clearly visible notch.
Distribution area
Sea burbot is an inhabitant of the North Atlantic. The range covers the coasts of some European countries, including:
- UK.
- Norway.
- Ireland.
- Iceland.
In the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, they are distributed from New Jersey to Bell Island Sound in Canada and along the coast of Newfoundland. This species is found in small numbers near the southern tip of Greenland. The range also affects part of the Barents Sea in the area of the polar archipelago of Svalbard and the Kola Peninsula.
Habitat and lifestyle
Sea burbot leads a bottom lifestyle at depths from 18 to 1000 m. temperature range for sea burbot - from 0 to 10 °С.
The habitats of menko are at a considerable distance from the coast. These fish are characterized by a sedentary lifestyle of a single or group nature (with a small number of individuals). Migrations are carried out only during spawning.
Menek is a predatory fish. His diet includes:
- polychaetes (polychaete worms);
- shellfish;
- crustaceans;
- fish are smaller.
Sometimes menek does not hesitate to eat his own fry.
Reproduction and Development
Reproductive age menek reaches 7-8 years. The spawning season lasts from April to August, with a peak in May. To breed, sea burbots migrate upstream along the coastline. The main spawning grounds are located between Scotland and Iceland ondepth from 200 to 500 m. A shallower breeding ground (less than 50 m) is the Gulf of Maine.
During spawning, the female spawns up to 2 million eggs. This process is accompanied by courtship on the part of the male, who, after the permission of the partner, fertilizes the clutch. Large floating eggs subsequently hatch into planktonic-type fry, which remain in shallow water until they reach a length of five centimeters. Then the cubs move to a depth where they become benthic fish.
Sea burbot is characterized by slow growth. Malek becomes an adult after 5-6 years, reaching a length of about 22 cm by this time. Then the fish adds about 10 cm per year. The average life expectancy is 17-18 years.
Commercial value
Despite the nutritional value of meat and large size, sea burbot has no important commercial value and is most often caught by fishermen's teams accidentally as by-catch when cod is caught. However, menek still occupies a certain share of the market stalls. This fish is sold fresh, smoked, frozen, dried and s alted.
In order to meet the needs of the market on a small scale, targeted mining of menka is underway. It is carried out by the longline method or with the help of bottom trawls. The main countries producing sea burbot are:
- Norway.
- USA.
- Iceland.
- Canada.
Menka meat is very he althy to eat. It has a high protein content and the presence of such important for the bodycomponents like vitamin B12, selenium and hydroxine. In addition, the meat of this fish has excellent taste.
