The "freshwater cod" is really not very well understood, and in many areas, people may not even know or care that it exists. In other areas, it is very well known and greatly appreciated. The misunderstanding begins with its name. It goes by many common names: eelpout, lawyer, spineless catfish, cusk, ling, ling cod, freshwater lush, and probably others. Its commonly accepted name is "burbot".

I must tell you that the scientific name is Lota lota (i.e. - Low-tah, Low-tah; I love the way that makes my tongue roll) and I must tell you a little story that goes along with that name. While I was in college, I was helping to collect some fish from a small lake in northern Wisconsin by electroshocking. One night the shocker "turned over" many fingerling-size d burbot which we netted and put into our live tank. We giggled about how we had "caughta lotta little Lota lota". Say it fast. Doesn't that just make your tongue warble? (Sorry, I get distracted easily...)

Burbot are easy to recognize. They are long and slender, with two dorsal fins. The first dorsal is very short, but the second extends over most of the back half of the body. The anal fin is nearly as long. Burbot are generally dark with a blotchy pattern on the top and sides and pale yellow or white below. As with all true codfish, they have one prominent barbel at the tip of the lower jaw.

Burbot are found in the northern latitudes around the world. Usually in lakes, but also in deep holes in large rivers. They live on the bottom, commonly in deep areas but they move into shallower water at night to feed. After they grow longer than 5 or 6 inches, they feed predominantly on fish, but they are not very selective.

Spawning occurs in mid-winter, at night, under the ice where the water is about 1 to 5 feet deep (sometimes up to 30 feet). There is no pairing, and the fish form a great milling mass over clean gravel and stones where eggs and sperm are released. Burbot mature as young as 2 to 4 years near the southern part of their distribution, but as much as 7 years farther north. An average female will lay about 600,000 small eggs, but large female s may have nearly 1.5 million. After the eggs are fertilized, they settle to the bottom and develop without any attention or care from the parents. Newly hatched fry begin their life only about 3/16" long.

Growth rate depends on both feeding conditions and water temperature. Those near the southern part of their range generally grow faster than those from the north. Although burbot rarely live longer than 15 years, one 24 year-old fish from the Interior of Alaska was nearly 40 inches long!

In the US, burbot are not well-known and have been largely overlooked. Early explorers in the Canadian Arctic ate it only as a last resort, and over much of its range, the burbot is not eaten. In Alaska, however, it is often sought after, especially by ice fishermen. I have heard some people say that they prefer the flavor of burbot over that of halibut.