A haplotype‐specific <scp>PCR</scp> strategy for rapid and cost‐effective identification of redfish species (genus <i>Sebastes</i> ) in the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans

Redfish species of the genus Sebastes are ecologically and commercially valuable components of North Atlantic and Arctic ecosystems. Accurate species identification within this group has long been controversial due to overlapping morphological traits, compounded by widespread interspecific hybridization. Methodological difficulties in distinguishing between Acadian redfish (Sebastes fasciatus) and beaked redfish (S. mentella), which occur sympatrically, have led to these species being managed as a single commercial stock in the Northwest Atlantic for decades. Additional challenges arise when differentiating catches of golden redfish (S. norvegicus) and S. mentella on the eastern Greenland slopes. Significant difficulties also occur in identifying juvenile Sebastes spp. in the Arctic Ocean. In recent years, efforts to develop genetic markers for redfish species identification have intensified. This work describes a haplotype-specific PCR assay based on mitochondrial control region (D-loop) polymorphisms for identifying North Atlantic redfish species.