To which biological family do the European Whiting and Pacific Whiting belong?

Gadidae

True whiting species, including the European Whiting (*Merlangius merlangus*), are classified within the cod family, which is scientifically known as Gadidae. This family classification is central to understanding their consistent physical characteristics, such as the three dorsal fins and two anal fins. Furthermore, the text specifies that the Pacific Whiting, also referred to as Pacific Hake (*Merlangius productus*), is indeed in the same family as the European species, maintaining a similar overall structure characteristic of Gadidae. This shared familial classification links their core skeletal and fin morphology, differentiating them clearly from species like the Tasmanian School Whiting (*Sillago flindersi*), which belongs to the Sillaginidae family, or the King Whiting (*Menticirrhus littoralis*).