Other vernacular names include lythe, and in the Isle of Man, calig.

[2] It is common in the north-eastern parts of the Northern Atlantic, including the Bay of Biscay and North Sea.

Landings data show three fairly distinct centres of distribution, one in the northern North Sea/Skagerrak extending north along the Norwegian coast, one between the English Channel, the Irish Sea, and the northern part of the French west coast, and one in the Iberian waters.

In Norway, tourist fishers alone were estimated to catch 100 tonnes of pollack in 2009.

[8] In France, 3,500 tonnes of pollock were estimated to be caught in all recreational fisheries.