Four Fish 9 Cod

Question 1

gonadtropic

Answer 1

Gonadotropic cells are endocrine cells in the anterior pituitary that produce the gonadotropins, such as the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH)

“If it is the dark ‘halcyon days’ of January that compel sea bass to spawn in the Mediterranean, in the North Sea it is the late-June solstice and the days of the simmer dim (the midnight sun in Shetland dialect) that cause a photosensitive organ in the cod’s brain to trigger the release of gonadotrpopic hormone.” ( 160)

Question 2

roe

Answer 2

the mass of eggs contained in the ovaries of a female fish or shellfish, typically including the ovaries themselves, especially when ripe and used as food.

“This hormone makes the cod stop

Question 3

milt

Answer 3

the semen of a male fish.

Question 4

rapacious

Answer 4

aggressively greedy or grasping: rapacious landlords.

“Listening to Rzepkowski talk about rapacious overfishing, catch quotas, and the importance of an organic approach, I couldn’t help but notice how, though he was clearly very well intentioned, those intentions were bing warped by the need to produce a sustainable business model.” (165) .

Question 5

cichlid

Answer 5

a perchlike freshwater fish of a family (Cichlidae) that is widely distributed in tropical countries. Cichlids provide a valuable source of food in some areas, and many are popular in aquariums.

Question 6

tilapia

Answer 6

an African freshwater fish that has been widely introduced to many areas for food.

“Tilapia lay fewer eggs than cod, but females typically gather up those eggs, once fertilized, in their mouths and protect them until they have passed the fragile early-larval stage…Tilapia” (180)

Question 7

tra

Answer 7

The basa fish (Pangasius bocourti) is a species of catfish in the family Pangasiidae. Basa are native to the Mekong and Chao Phraya basins in Indochina. … They are often labeled in North America and Australia as “basa fish”, “swai”, or “bocourti

“Tilapia, like tra in their native state, are filter feeders, able to live solely off elements of human waste, algae, and other microscopic plankton. So with tilapia, poor farmers, whose only resource besides land might be a stagnant patch of muddy water, suddenly had the chance to add protein to their diet with very little effort.” (181)

Question 8

filter feeding

Answer 8

(of an aquatic animal) feeding by filtering out plankton or nutrients suspended in the water.

“Tilapia, like tra in their native state, are filter feeders, able to live solely off elements of human waste, algae, and other microscopic plankton.” (181)

Question 9

off flavor

Answer 9

taints in food products caused by the presence of undesirable compounds.

“But another major factor had to do with a phenomenon that plagues all freshwater-fish farmers, something known as ‘off-flavor.’ “ (181)

Question 10

geosim

Answer 10

an organic compound with a distinct earthy flavor and aroma produced by a type of Actinobacteria, and is responsible for the earthy taste of beets and a contributor to the strong scent (petrichor) that occurs in the air when rain falls after a dry spell of weather or when soil is disturbed

“Off-flavor, occurs in stagnant fresh water when certain varieties of blue-green algae bloom and emit a compound called geosim, from the Greek geo, meaning ‘earth.’ Fish inhabiting these blooms temporarily take on the taste of geosim, a harmless but earthy flavor that most diners find unpleasantly muddy.

Question 11

coca

Answer 11

a tropical American shrub that is widely grown for its leaves, which are the source of cocaine.

“As one fish farmer told me, asking not to be identified by name for obvious reasons, ‘If you put a Gel-Pak of cocaine in a crate full of tilapia fillets, can a drug-sniffing dog find it? Nope.’ “ (182)

Question 12

vagary

Answer 12

an unexpected and inexplicable change in a situation or in someone’s behavior: the vagaries of the weather.

“Perhaps in an earlier era, when the world population was a fifth of what it is today, when fishing gear was smaller and less intrusive, and when river and estuary systems produced a bounty of forage fish like herring, perhaps then a multinational industry could sit upon the vagaries of constantly fluctuating wild populations of cod, pollock, and hoki.”

Question 13

soy

Answer 13

protein derived from soybeans, used as a replacement for animal protein in foods and fodder.

“….more and more rain forest is being cut down to grow soy for tilapia nd tra feed. But more than any other form of animal protein, tilapia, and tra grow extremely fast and are extremely efficient in turning feed into flesh. Much more efficient than the chickens and pigs that would end up eating that same soy if the tra and tilapia didn’t.” (187)