''Gadella maraldi'', the gadella or morid cod, is a species of fish in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Moridae The Moridae are a family of cod-like fishes, known as codlings, hakelings, and moras. Morids are marine fishes found throughout the world, and may be found at depths to , although most prefer shallower waters. In appearance, they greatly resembl ...

from the warmer waters of the north eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Description

''Gadella maraldi'' grow to a maximum length of . Its upper jaw has two rows of teeth, the outer row is made up of small teeth interspersed with notably large ones; the inner one only has small teeth. The

anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...

originates on the anterior third of body, under the origin of anterior

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...

while the

pectoral fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish aquatic locomotion, swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the vertebral column ...

s reach well past the origin of the anal fin. The filamentous ray of the pelvic fins extends slightly beyond the anal fin origin. It is generally dark in colour with a pale mouth cavity.

Distribution

''Gadella maraldi'' is found in the warmer waters of the north eastern Atlantic from the southern Atlantic coast of Portugal south to west Africa, its southern limit in Africa being uncertain. Its Atlantic range includes the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...

and the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

, as well as the Grand Meteor Bank. In the Mediterranean Sea it occurs from the coast of Spain and the

Balearics The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a province and autonomous community of Spain, with Palma de Mallorca being its capital and largest ...

to the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

and

Levantine Sea The Levantine Sea () is the easternmost part of the Mediterranean Sea. Geography The Levantine Sea is bordered by Turkey in the north and north-east corner, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine in the east, Egypt in the south, and the Aegean ...

. It has been recorded as far north as Galicia and three specimens were taken from the

Porcupine Bank Porcupine Bank is a raised area on the Irish shelf, approximately west of Ireland. It is 200 m below sea level at its highest.Shannon, P, Haughton, P, Corcoran D, (2001) The Petroleum Exploration of Ireland's Offshore Basins, Geological Society ...

off Ireland in the 21st Century.

Habitat and ecology

''Gadella maraldi'' is a

benthopelagic The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...

fish which can be found on the upper

continental slope A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust abutting oceanic crust under coastal waters. It is one of the three major zones of the ocean floor, the other two being deep-ocean basins and mid-ocean ridges. The continental margi ...

, over hard substrates at depths ranging from 150 to 700 m, to 368–748m in the east

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea (, ; or , ; , ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including Basilicata, Calabria, Sicily, and the Salento peninsula to the west, ...

. Spawning most likely takes place in the Spring and it has pelagic larvae. Its diet is not known. It attains sexual maturity at a length of 15 cm.

Fisheries

It is taken as a bycatch and occasionally recorded in markets but it is not a commercially significant species.

Naming

The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

''maraldi'' honours the French-Italian astronomer and mathematician

Giacomo F. Maraldi Giacomo Filippo Maraldi (21 August 1665 – 1 December 1729) was a French-Italian astronomer and mathematician. His name is also given as Jacques Philippe Maraldi. Born in Perinaldo (modern Liguria) he was the nephew of Giovanni Cassini, and ...

(1665-1729), who was also known as Jacques Maraldi.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q597575 Moridae Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Marine fish of North Africa Fauna of Macaronesia Fish described in 1810 Taxa named by Antoine Risso