Flatfishes: Pleuronectiformes - Physical Characteristics, Behavior And Reproduction, Peacock Flounder (bothus Lunatus): Species Accounts, Pacific Halibut (hippoglossus Stenolepis): Species Accounts - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, HABITAT, DIET, FLATFISHES AND PEOPLE,
Flatfishes live all over the world.
Most flatfishes live in coastal waters over sand and mud bottoms.
Flatfishes eat invertebrates (in-VER-teh-brehts), or animals without backbones, and fishes.
Flatfishes are important food fishes.
The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists one species of flatfishes as Endangered and one as Vulnerable. Endangered means facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. Vulnerable means facing a high risk of extinction in the wild.
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Flatfishes have both eyes on the same side of the head. The body is disk-shaped or oval. These fishes are 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) to 6 feet, 6 inches (2 meters) long and weigh as much as 661 pounds (300 kilograms), but most are about 12 inches (30 centimeters) long. The eye side of most flatfishes is dark brown or black, sometimes with spots, bands, or wavy stripes. The other side is usually whit…
Except for halibuts, which chase other animals for food, flatfishes lie on the bottom and ambush their prey, or animals killed for food. When flatfishes swim, they glide with wavy movements. Most flatfishes are active during the day, some around sunrise and sunset, and others at night. Flatfishes do not form schools. Some flatfishes travel great distances to spawn once a year. Males of some specie…
Physical characteristics: The eyes of peacock flounders are on the left side of the head. There is a wide space between the eyes, and the lower eye is farther forward than the upper eye. Males have a strong spine on their snout. The body is disk-shaped. The eye side of the body is grayish brown with many bright blue rings and two or three large black spots. Peacock flounders can grow to a length o…
Physical characteristics: Female Pacific halibut reach a length of almost 9 feet (2.7 meters) and a weight of about 498 pounds (226 kilograms). Males are about half that size. The eyes of Pacific halibut are on the right side of the head, and the upper eye is farther forward than the bottom eye. The body is thick and diamond-shaped. The eye side is greenish brown to dark brown or black with lighte…
Physical characteristics: The eyes of common sole are on the right side of the head. The body is long and thick. On the eyeless side, the head and snout are covered with white bumps. The eye side is dark brown or grayish brown with darker blotches. The eyeless side is creamy white. The dorsal and anal fins are edged in white, and the pectoral fin on the eye side has an oval black patch. These fish…
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