Saithe (Pollachius virens) is a saltwater species recorded in the United States. It is found at depths of 37–364 m.
Scientific name: Pollachius virens · Water: Saltwater
Size: up to 130 cm
The saithe is an active, gregarious gadid occurring in inshore and offshore waters, and it is recorded from 37 to 364 m. It enters coastal waters as the water warms and returns to deeper water as it cools, and migrations for spawning are known to occur, as are long-distance north-south migrations off Europe and the United States. Smaller fish in inshore waters feed on small crustaceans such as copepods, amphipods and euphausiids as well as on small fish, while larger fish prey predominantly on fishes. It spawns in batches, and it is utilized fresh, dried or salted, smoked, canned and frozen. Its range is the North Atlantic, from south-west Greenland and Hudson Strait to North Carolina, and east to the Bay of Biscay, the Barents Sea and Spitsbergen, and it is rare at the extremes of its range. Maximum length is about 130 cm total length, commonly about 60 cm, and it can live 25 years, maturing at about 39.1 cm. It is a highly commercial species and a gamefish, with a low price category. Fishing vulnerability is high at 59 of 100 and resilience medium, and climate vulnerability is moderate at 38 of 100; no IUCN assessment is recorded for it.
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