Atlantic cod

Gadus morhua · The Atlantic cod is a widely eaten fish that lives in the North Atlantic, from the coasts of North America and Greenland to Europe's seas and the Arctic Ocean.

Also called Codling, Haberdine, Kil'din Cod, Core-fish.

Atlantic cod
Photo: Wilhelm Thomas Fiege, CC BY-SA 4.0
Atlantic cod
Photo: © Hans Hillewaert, CC BY-SA 4.0
Atlantic cod
Photo: Hans-Petter Fjeld, CC BY-SA 2.5

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassActinopterygii
OrderGadiformes
FamilyGadidae
GenusGadus
SpeciesGadus morhua

Where it lives

Cold seas off Norway, Iceland, Newfoundland and New England, plus the Baltic and Barents.

Fun facts

  • Some Atlantic cod grow huge: individuals over 180 cm long and 50 kg have been caught.
  • A stripe along a cod's side, called the lateral line, is used to detect vibrations in the water.
  • Female cod are egg-laying champions: each one can spawn between 2 hundred thousand and 15 million eggs, with larger females laying more.
  • Male cod make sounds, and females seem to use them to choose a mate.

Play it

The Atlantic cod was the creature in a regional daily on November 7, 2026. Can you identify tomorrow's from its photos? Every day brings a new creature to place from kingdom to genus, map and name.

Play today's creature or replay a past daily

Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).