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Greenland Halibut

Greenpeace Canada Redlist

Latin Name
Reinhardtius hippoglossoides

Other Common Names
Turbot, Greenland turbot, Newfoundland turbot, blue halibut, black halibut.

Fishing Method
Deep sea otter trawl, some gillnets being used.

Region of Harvest
Northwest Atlantic. Fished in Atlantic Canadian waters off Newfoundland, Labrador, Baffin Island and the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Why is it on the red list?

Biology

1.
Overfishing. Biomass has been declining and is presently estimated to be at its lowest observed level.

2.
Greenland halibut are highly vulnerable to fishing pressure and have low resilience, making recovery difficult.

3.
Trawling for Greenland halibut occurs in deep, sensitive habitats such as coral reefs.

Greenland halibut live as deep as 2000 metres below sea level.

They are a slow-maturing species that can live up to 30 years.

The heaviest Greenland halibut on record is 45 kilograms, and they can grow up to one metre in length.

They feed on crustaceans, fishes, deep sea prawns and other invertebrates.