age of the fish, older females tend to lay only two million in one spawning period). Spawning occurs between December to April near the bottom of the ocean between . The egg size is around 3.0–3.8 mm and the larvae at time of hatching is 6.5 mm. Growth weight is dependent on the density, competition, and availability of food. Habitat This marine fish usually lives on the ocean floor at depths between , but it occasionally comes closer to the surface. The larvae are pelagic, drifting relatively helplessly, but at around 4 cm, they migrate to the bottom. Young between the ages of two and four years live close to the shore, moving into deeper waters as they grow older. Geographic distribution Found in both the eastern and western portions of the North Atlantic. In the western Atlantic, found from southwestern Greenland and Labrador, Canada to Virginia in the USA. They are found in the eastern Atlantic around Iceland, the United Kingdom, and northern Europe to Russia. A map of the Atlantic Halibut's geographic distribution can be found on the Official Website of Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. This demersal fish is found ranging from the latitude and longitude coordinates: 79°N - 36°N, 77°W - 55°E. Role in ecosystem The Atlantic halibut occupies a relatively high trophic level in the food chain. Diet The diet of the Atlantic halibut consists mainly of other fish, e.g. cod, haddock, herring, pogge, sand eels and capelin, but it will also eat cephalopods, large crustaceans and other benthos organisms. During the first year of their life, halibut mostly feed on plankton. Once they turn 1, they feed on euphausiids and small fish until around age 3. As the halibut grows, the diet mostly consists of other fish including smaller halibut. Predators Atlantic halibut are eaten by seals, and are a staple food of the Greenland shark. Killer whales are also natural predators of the halibut. Humans also consume halibut. Commercial fishing of wild Atlantic halibut The wild Atlantic halibut was formerly a very important food fish, but due to its slow rate of population growth, it is unable to recover quickly from overfishing, and the fishery has largely collapsed. Consequently, wild fish labelled as "halibut" are usually one of the other large flatfishes, including Pacific halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis. The most popular way to catch the Alaskan halibut is to use circle hooks that are