The utility of 15 new and 17 previously published microsatellite markers was evaluated for species identification and stock delimitation in the deep‐water hake Merluccius paradoxus and the shallow‐water hake Merluccius capensis . A total of 14 microsatellites were polymorphic in M. paradoxus and 10 in M. capensis . Two markers could individually discriminate the species using Bayesian clustering methods and a statistical power...