Australia country information

Common names: Blue grenadier, Blue grenadier, Blue hake
Occurrence: native
Salinity: brackish
Abundance: abundant (always seen in some numbers) | Ref: Kailola, P.J., M.J. Williams, P.C. Stewart, R.E. Reichelt, A. McNee and C. Grieve, 1993
Importance: commercial | Ref: Kailola, P.J., M.J. Williams, P.C. Stewart, R.E. Reichelt, A. McNee and C. Grieve, 1993
Aquaculture: never/rarely | Ref: Kailola, P.J., M.J. Williams, P.C. Stewart, R.E. Reichelt, A. McNee and C. Grieve, 1993
Regulations: restricted | Ref: Kailola, P.J., M.J. Williams, P.C. Stewart, R.E. Reichelt, A. McNee and C. Grieve, 1993
Uses: no uses
Comments: Distributed through southern Australian waters from Broken Bay, New South Wales (Ref. 7300 ) to the western region of the Great Australian Bight (Ref. 26611). Electrophoretic studies of Australian blue grenadier indicate a single Australian stock. However, Australian and New Zealand samples may have significant differences due to genetic isolation of the 2 groups (Ref. 26612). Commercial fishery: The Australian blue grenadier fishery has operated since the late 1970s when the first large catches were taken in Tasmanian waters. The fishery has since become an important component of the South East Fishery with catches ranging between 1500 and 2800 t liveweight. A small amount (up to 50 t per year) of blue grenadier is caught by trawlers in the Great Australian Bight Trawl Fishery. Blue grenadier are caught throughout the South East Fishery by vessels using demersal otter trawl gear in depths of 300 to 600 m (Ref. 26613) but the main fishing ground is located near the spawning area off western Tasmania (Ref. 26566). Fishers also catch significant quantities throughout the year in southern and south-eastern Tasmanian waters and off Portland on the Victorian coast (Ref. 26613). Mid-water trawling for blue grenadier has also been tried. Most of the blue grenadier catch results from targeted fishing. Blue grenadier are usually sold on the domestic fresh fish market. The fish are mainly processed as fillets or cutlets; however there is potential for development of markets for manufactured fish products ('surimi') which utilise blue grenadier. Some of the blue grenadier catch is also exported as frozen fillets to the United States. Recreational fishery: Blue grenadiers are infrequently caught by anglers. Resource status: There are no reliable estimates of stock size for this species. However, 1992 estimates of sustainable yields for blue grenadier suggest that the Australian fishery may be able to sustain catches higher than historic catch levels (Ref. 26566). Also Ref. 9988, 58452.
National Checklist:
Country Information: httpss://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html
National Fisheries Authority: https://www.csiro.au/
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Kailola, P.J., M.J. Williams, P.C. Stewart, R.E. Reichelt, A. McNee and C. Grieve, 1993
National Database:

Classification / Names

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Gadiformes (Cods) > Merlucciidae (Merluccid hakes) > Merlucciinae
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Common names from other countries

Макруронус новозеландский, Grenadier bleu, Cola de rata azul, ... more

Main reference

Cohen, D.M., T. Inada, T. Iwamoto and N. Scialabba. 1990. (Ref. 1371)
References | Biblio | Coordinator | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 120 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); 130.0 cm TL (female); common length : 80.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1371); max. published weight: 1.5 kg (Ref. 1371); max. published weight: 1.5 kg; max. reported age: 25 years (Ref. 6390)

Length at first maturity
L_m ?, range 65 - 70 cm

Environment

Marine; brackish; benthopelagic; oceanodromous; depth range 0 - 1000 m (Ref. 26566), usually 200 - 700 m (Ref. 9563)

Climate / Range

Subtropical, preferred 14°C (Ref. 107945); 15°S - 55°S, 111°E - 173°W (Ref. 58452)

Distribution

Southwest Pacific: New Zealand and southern Australia.
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 12 - 13; Dorsal soft rays (total): 96-106; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 89 - 93; Vertebrae: 78 - 81. Dorsal surface silvery, with a purple or blue-green tinge; plank and belly silvery; fins darker. Body very elongate and compressed with a tapering tail, dorsal and anal fins confluent with the caudal fin (Ref. 33856).

Appear to live usually on or near the bottom, but may occasionally move up into mid-waters. Large adult fish generally occur deeper than 400 m, while juveniles may be found in shallower water (Ref. 9072), more commonly found in large estuaries and bays, and may even enter freshwaters (Ref. 1371). Juvenile specimens and especially adults belonging to the American subspecies, have been caught from the coastal zone to 110 m (Ref. 58452). Form schools. Feed primarily on lantern fishes. In New Zealand, it feeds in midwater on small fish, crustaceans and squid. Oviparous, spawn 1 million eggs on the average which are released all at one time (Ref. 6390). Utilized fresh and frozen; can be steamed, fried, cooked in microwave and baked (Ref. 9988).

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: highly commercial

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Internet sources

Estimates of some properties based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805)
PD₅₀ = 0.5625 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Trophic Level (Ref. 69278)
4.5 ±0.2 se; Based on diet studies.

Resilience (Ref. 69278)
Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.12-0.2; tm=3-7; tmax=25; Fec = 1,000,000)

Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)
High to very high vulnerability (66 of 100)

Price category (Ref. 80766)
Medium

Macruronus novaezelandiae (Hector, 1871)