Lingcod

Lingcod
Ophiodon elongatus
At Santa Catalina Island, California
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scorpaeniformes
Family: Hexagrammidae
Genus: Ophiodon
Species:
O. elongatus
Binomial name
Ophiodon elongatus
Girard, 1854
Range of the lingcod.

The lingcod or ling cod (Ophiodon elongatus), also known as the buffalo cod or cultus cod, is a fish of the greenling family Hexagrammidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Ophiodon.[1] A slightly larger, extinct species, Ophiodon ozymandias, is known from fossils from the Late Miocene of Southern California.[2]

Ophiodon elongatus is native to the North American west coast from Shumagin Islands in the Gulf of Alaska to Baja California, Mexico. It has been observed up to a size of 152 centimetres (60 in) and a weight of 59 kilograms (130 lb).[3] It is spotted in various shades of gray. The lingcod is a popular eating fish, and is thus prized by anglers. Though not closely related to either ling or cod, the name "lingcod" originated because it somewhat resembles those fish. Around 20% of lingcods have blue-green to turquoise flesh.[4]p. 298 The colour, which is destroyed by cooking, may be due to biliverdin, but this has not been established beyond doubt.[5]

  1. ^ "World Register of Marine Species Ophiodon Girard, 1854".
  2. ^ Jordan, D.S. & J.Z. Gilbert, 1920. Fossil fishes of diatom beds of Lompoc, Stanford University. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/68104
  3. ^ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Ophiodon elongatus". FishBase. October 2010 version.
  4. ^ Love, Milton S. (2011). Certainly more than you want to know about the fishes of the Pacific Coast : a postmodern experience (PDF). Santa Barbara, Calif.: Really Big Press. ISBN 978-0962872563. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  5. ^ Bland, Alastair. "Red Fish, Blue Fish: Where The Fish Flesh Rainbow Comes From". the salt. NPR. Retrieved 18 October 2014.