Norwegian record Polar cod: 37 g

About Polar cod

The polar cod (Boreogadus saida), or Arctic cod, is a slender Arctic cod with a brownish-grey back, silvery sides and a pale belly. It has three dorsal fins, two anal fins, a jutting lower jaw, a tiny chin barbel and a forked tail. Most are 20–25 cm, and few exceed 40 cm. It lives farther north than any other fish, around the Arctic Ocean, often in sub-zero water near the ice edge, protected by antifreeze proteins. It lives both near the bottom and in open water, down to about 400 m. In Norway it lives mainly in the Barents Sea north and east of the polar front, around Svalbard and in Porsangerfjorden. It eats zooplankton and is a key link passing energy to seals, seabirds, whales and fish; its eggs and larvae depend on sea ice. Not fished by Norway since about 1990, it is listed as Endangered (EN) on the Norwegian Red List 2021, partly as the ice shrinks.

Sources: Artsdatabanken, Store norske leksikon, Wikipedia

• Habitat: Saltvann

See the species guide

Biggest Polar cod in FishComp

Caught a Polar cod? Log it in FishComp.

How to register a Norwegian record

1. Norwegian sport-fishing records are registered with Villmarksliv, not with FishComp. Read the rules before you do anything else with the fish.
2. Records are based on weight and approved by a jury. You give the weight and length, where it was caught, the gear you used and any witnesses.
3. Keep your photos and notes from the catch. Logging it in FishComp does not register a record.