Measurements of otolith and head dimensions of the ling,Genypterus blacodes, were used to test for morphometric variation in this species in the sea around New Zealand. Canonical discriminant analysis and multivariate analysis of variance showed that ling from the west coast of the South Island and from the Chatham Rise and Canterbury waters generally had longer and narrower heads and thinner otoliths than ling from the southern areas. There was evidence for at least three separate ling stocks in the New Zealand Exclusive Economic Zone.