Monkfish

Goosefish, Monkfish, Anglerfish, Angerl, Allmouth, Lotte (Europe), Molligut, Bellyfish, Lawyerfish, Fishing frog

Ankoh, Ankimo (Monkfish liver)

Monkfish are fast growing and relatively short-lived compared to other deep-living fishes, maturing at three to five years and as small as 30 cm total length. Monkfish are sedentary, bottom-dwellers in the family Lophiidae (goosefishes) that inhabit the Atlantic Ocean from the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Canada to Cape Hatteras in the United States and may also be found as far south as northern Florida. Monkfish are scaleless and soft-bodied, with very broad, depressed heads (the head is as wide as the fish is long) and enormous mouths. They have long, sharp teeth and a modified spine called an “esca,” which can be angled forward so dangles in front of the fish’s mouth and is wiggled like bait to lure prey. Monkfish have been known to eat prey at least half their size or more, using the powerful vacuum created by the rapid expansion of their mouth. These sedentary bottom-dwellers, moving slowly or “walk” with their pectoral fins, often hiding in shallow depressions in sediment. Seasonal migrations seem to be related to spawning and food availability. In the northern
Atlantic off Canada, monkfish are largely concentrated in a narrow band on the southern Grand Banks, with no significant seasonal shifts.

This species spawns eggs masses with 300 000 to 3.2 million eggs, is fast-growing, matures at 3-5 years and is short-lived relative to other deep-living fishes (maximum age: 9 years males, 12 years females).

In Canadian waters, monkfish stocks are assessed by area, with the primary focus being the Laurentian Channel near the Grand Banks off Newfoundland and the Scotian Shelf southeast of Nova Scotia. The 2002 Fisheries and Oceans’ assessment of both stocks, as well as indicators of stock health such as size composition and reproductive condition, show numbers reduced relative to previous decades.

There are bycatch problems with all three of the main gear types used to catch monkfish (otter trawl, scallop dredge, and sink gill net). Otter trawls and scallop dredges are indiscriminate and induce a large percentage of unmarketable or regulatory discards. Sink gill nets have been observed to interact regularly with marine mammals, two of which are classified as strategic stocks under the MMPA, and one species of endangered sea turtle. The nature and extent of bycatch for these gear types is considered a high conservation concern.

Sink gillnets, used to catch Monkfish in Canada, have negligible effects on benthic habitat (Barnette, 2001). In the US, bottom trawling and scallop dredging, both inflict notable damage to sea-floors that have direct impacts on benthic communities and prevent the recovery of fish species that use this habitat for cover early in the juvenile phase.

Management has only been moderately effective, because despite monitoring and assessment, monkfish numbers continue to drop. In Canada, the monkfish fishery is managed within the DFO’s groudfish (mixed) fishery, and a Conservation Harvest Plan is in place to provide regulatory guidelines. Observers are deployed to 20-100% of the total fleet to monitor regulations and collect fish data; 100% dockside monitoring is in effect. Spring research surveys of the Grank Banks are used to assess trends in abundance. The directed monkfish fishery has a conservative quote set around 200 mt, and is regulated by bycatch restrictions, mainly for cod and haddock (Kulka and Miri, 2001). General regulations applicable to the groundfish fleet also apply to monkfish, including individually transferable quotas (ITQa), Dockside Monitoring Programs (DMP), prohibition on discarding undersize target species, gear restrictions, seasonal closures and no-fishing zones to protect habitat.

Is this monkfish from Canadian or US waters?
Do you know if a trawl net or a sink gill net was used to catch this monkfish?

No.