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Monkfish
(U.S. Atlantic, Bottom Trawl and Bottom Gillnet)
Rating:
U.S. monkfish caught with bottom trawl and bottom gillnet is a "Good Alternative."
Market Names:
Anglerfish, Ankoh, Goosefish
Consumer Notes:
Monkfish is known as ankoh when prepared for sushi, and the liver is sold as ankimo.
Summary:
Monkfish is found from the Canadian Maritimes to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. This recommendation is for the U.S. monkfish fishery only.
Monkfish is vulnerable to overfishing and the fishery was once classified as overfished. But thanks to improved management, stocks have been able to increase over recent years to a more sustainable level.
There are two fisheries. The northern stock, including Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank, is caught primarily with bottom trawl; while the southern stock south of Cape Cod is caught primarily with bottom gillnets.
Both have bycatch problems. The trawl fishery accidentally catches several groundfish species, while the gillnet fishery catches endangered Atlantic sturgeon. Work is ongoing to minimize bycatch.
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