MacKay (1973) claimed burbot roe to be a delicacy, especially when served on hot buttered toast, although the eggs are too small to be marketed to Russia or Eastern Europe. Despite fairly low market demand, the Great Lakes now sustain a fairly productive commercial fishery of several thousand kilograms a year, undoubtedly related to regulations allowing fishermen to sale 10% lake trout as "incidental catch" of their "legal catch" (Becker 1983). Brataas (1996) suggests that the canning/filleting machines have yet to be designed to deal efficiently with the burbot's rounded posterior.

Becker, G. C. 1983. Fishes of Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin: Madison. pp. 747-750.

Brataas, Anne. 1996. North Country Almanac: A Seasonal Guide to the Outdoors. Andrews and McMeel: Kansas City.

MacKay, H. H. 1963. Fishes of Ontario. Ontario. Dep Lands Forestry. Toronto.

Text by Kristin Blann Experiment for Fisheries 5601 March 11, 1997