Atlantic cod Gadus morhua in the Mediterranean: A surprising immigrant

Abstract

A female cod Gadus morhua L. 87.1 cm total length was captured off Mallorca (Balearic Islands, NW Mediterranean) in June 2009 by a bottom trawler between 63 and 110 m depth. This is the first documented occurrence of the species in the Mediterranean. The fish was mature, with a very low hepatosomatic index and atretric gonads. Age assigned from the otoliths was 4 yr. The otolith chemical composition indicated that this fish entered the Mediterranean late in its first year of life. © Inter-Research 2012.