Burbot Identification Guide
How to recognize burbot, the only freshwater cod relative, by its marbled skin and single barbel.
Read the full Burbot encyclopedia entry →
Key identification features
- Elongated, eel-like body with small, deeply embedded scales giving a smooth, slippery appearance
- Mottled olive-brown to yellow-green marbled or blotched pattern over a lighter background
- Single, long barbel centered on the chin
- Two dorsal fins - a short first fin and a long second fin - mirrored by a long anal fin
- Rounded tail fin
- Broad, flattened head with small eyes
Common look-alikes
- American eel: lacks burbot's paired pelvic fins and mottled pattern, and has one continuous fin fringing the body rather than separate dorsal fins
- Lake trout: has an adipose fin and scattered pale spots rather than marbling, and lacks any chin barbel
- Sculpins: shorter, more compressed bodies with large pectoral fins and no chin barbel
Where you'll see one
Burbot is the only gadid living entirely in fresh water, found in cold rivers, lakes, and reservoirs across the Northern Hemisphere in North America, Europe, and Asia. It stays near the bottom, often in deep, cold water, and becomes most active in winter.
Frequently asked questions
How do I tell a burbot from an eel?
Look at the fins - burbot has distinct paired pelvic fins set forward under the throat and two separate dorsal fins, while eels have no pelvic fins and one continuous fin around the body.
What's the best mark to confirm burbot rather than a trout species?
Burbot has a single chin barbel and mottled marbled skin with no adipose fin, whereas trout have a small adipose fin near the tail and lack any barbel.
Burbot identified by the community
Recent Burbot catches identified with Fish Identifier.
