Hakes Grenadiers Cods and Relatives: Gadiformes

Some fishes in the group that includes grenadiers, hakes, cods, and their relatives have three separate dorsal (DOOR-suhl) fins and two separate anal fins. The dorsal fin is the fin along the midline of the back. The anal (AY-nuhl) fin is the fin along the midline of the belly. Other fishes in this group have two dorsal fins. The front one is small and may have a long spine. The rear dorsal fin in these fishes is quite long, extending from just behind the first dorsal fin all the way to the tail. Some fishes in this group have two anal fins. Others have one long anal fin that extends almost the length of the body. Still others have one small anal fin. Other fishes in this group have long bodies that get thinner toward the tail and have a long thin tail rather than a tail fin. Some fishes in this group have a large chin barbel (BAR-buhl), or a feeler used for the senses of taste, touch, and smell. Cods that live in open water are small, about 6 inches (15 centimeters) long. Bottom-dwelling fishes in this group have a well-developed swim bladder, which is an internal sac that fishes use to control their position in the water. The open-water species do not have a swim bladder.