Sablefish

Sablefish
Anoplopoma fimbria
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Cottoidei
Family: Anoplopomatidae
Genus: Anoplopoma
Ayres, 1859
Species:
A. fimbria
Binomial name
Anoplopoma fimbria
(Pallas, 1814)
Synonyms
  • Gadus fimbria Pallas, 1814
  • Anoplopoma merlangus Ayres, 1859
  • Scombrocottus salmoneus Peters, 1872

The sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) is one of two members of the fish family Anoplopomatidae and the only species in the genus Anoplopoma. In English, common names for it include sable (US), butterfish (US), black cod (US, UK, Canada), blue cod (UK), bluefish (UK), candlefish (UK), coal cod (UK), snowfish (ปลาหิมะ; Thailand), coalfish (Canada), beshow, and skil (Canada), although many of these names also refer to other, unrelated, species. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepts only "sablefish" as the acceptable market name in the United States; "black cod" is considered a vernacular (regional) name and should not be used as a statement of identity for this species. The sablefish is found in muddy sea beds in the North Pacific Ocean at depths of 300 to 2,700 m (980 to 8,860 ft) and is commercially important to Japan.