Spanish ling

The Spanish ling (Molva macrophthalma), also called the Mediterranean ling and even blue ling^[1][3] (though the latter is also used for Molva dypterygia), is a species of fish in the family Lotidae.^[1][2][3]

Spanish ling
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Gadiformes
Family:	Lotidae
Genus:	Molva
Species:	M. macrophthalma
Binomial name
Molva macrophthalma (Rafinesque, 1810)
Synonyms[2]
Phycis macrophthalmus Rafinesque, 1810 Gadus elongatus Otto, 1821 Lota elongata Otto, 1821 Lotta elongata Otto, 1821 Molva dipterygia elongata Otto, 1821 Molva dypterygia macrophthalma Rafinesque, 1810 Molva elongata Otto, 1821

Description

It maximum length is 108 cm (3.54 ft).^[3]

Habitat

Spanish ling lives in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and western Mediterranean;^[1][3] it is common in the Azores. It lives at moderate shallow waters,^[4] being recorded at depths of 388–754 m (1,273–2,474 ft) in the Ionian Sea, and has also been found in the Aegean Sea.^[5][6]

Behaviour

It feeds on bony fish, squid and lobsters.^[7][8] Known parasites include Lernaeocera copepods.^[9]