Hake (Merluccius australis)

Hake - Merluccius australis
Name: Hake (Merluccius australis)
Family: Merlucciidae (Merluccid hakes), subfamily: Merlucciinae
Alternative Name: Southern hake
Order: Gadiformes (cods)
Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Environment: Benthopelagic; oceanodromous; marine ; depth range 62 - 1000 m
Climate: Subtropical; 38°S - 59°S
Importance: Fisheries: highly commercial
Resilience: Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.07-0.19; tm=6-10; tmax=30)
Diagnosis: Dorsal spines (total): 1-1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 48-57; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 40-46; Vertebrae: 53-58. Body more slender than other hakes. Pectoral fins long and slender, stripe reaching anal fin in young individuals but not in fish over 50 cm in SL. Gill rakers short and thick with blunt tips. Color is steel grey on back grading to silvery white ventrally.
Distribution: Circumglobal in the southern hemisphere (Ref. 7300). Two distinct groups. New Zealand population: Chatham Rise, Campbell Plateau and South Island northward to the East Cape . Patagonian population: Chiloé Island in the Pacific, southward around the southern tip of South America to the continental shelf to 59°S, and the slope north to 38°S in the Atlantic.
Max size: 126 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 1371); max. reported age: 30 years
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