A flatfish is a member of the ray-finned demersal fish order Pleuronectiformes, also called the Heterosomata, sometimes classified as a suborder of Perciformes. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around the head during development. Some species face their left sides upward, some face their right sides upward, and others face either side upward.
The turbot is a relatively large species of flatfish in the family Scophthalmidae. It is a demersal fish native to marine or brackish waters of the Northeast Atlantic, Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. It is an important food fish. Turbot in the Black Sea have often been included in this species, but are now generally regarded as separate, the Black Sea turbot or kalkan. True turbot are not found in the Northwest Atlantic; the "turbot" of that region, which was involved in the so-called "Turbot War" between Canada and Spain, is the Greenland halibut or Greenland turbot.
The Scophthalmidae are a family of flatfish found in the North Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea. Fish of this family are known commonly as turbots, though this name can refer specifically to Scophthalmus maximus, as well. Some common names found in species of this family are turbots, windowpanes, and brills.
The European plaice, commonly referred to as simply plaice, is a species of marine flatfish in the genus Pleuronectes of the family Pleuronectidae.
The hogchoker is a small species of flatfish found along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North and South America, ranging from Massachusetts to Venezuela. They prefer brackish water, and are abundant in many bays and estuaries north of the Carolinas. It is a member of the American sole family Achiridae. They are usually brown to dark brown in color, and lighter on their "blind side". The overall body color is often broken by a series of spots and thin stripes, which can be lighter or darker than the main body color. The fins and tail have fringed edges helping hide the fish from its prey. They mainly feed on small aquatic insects and invertebrates. They get their common name because East Coast fishermen would feed these so-called "trash" fish to their hogs, after which the fish would bow its body into a suction cup and stick to the soft palate of the hog, rather like peanut butter in a dog’s mouth.
The common dab is an edible flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish native to shallow seas around Northern Europe, in particular the North Sea, where it lives on sandy bottoms down to depths of about 100 metres (330 ft). It can reach 40 centimetres (16 in) in length and can weigh up to 1 kilogram (2.2 lb), though most specimens grow no longer than 20 centimetres (7.9 in).
The common ling, also known as the white ling or simply the ling, is a large member of the family Lotidae, a group of cod-like fishes. It resembles the related rocklings, but it is much larger and has a single barbel. This species is unrelated to the pink ling, Genypterus blacodes, from the Southern Hemisphere. The common ling is found in the northern Atlantic, mainly off Europe, and into the Mediterranean Basin. It is an important quarry species for fisheries, especially in the northeastern Atlantic, although some doubts exist as to the sustainability of the fisheries. As an edible species, it is eaten fresh, frozen, or dried, but also preserved in lye, while the roe is a delicacy in Spain.
The New Zealand turbot, Colistium nudipinnis, is a righteye flounder of the subfamily Rhombosoleinae in the family Pleuronectidae, found around New Zealand in shallow enclosed waters.
The witch, known in English by a variety of other common names including the witch flounder, pole flounder, craig fluke, Torbay sole, and grey sole, is a species of flatfish from the family Pleuronectidae. It occurs on both sides of the North Atlantic Ocean on muddy sea beds in quite deep water. In northern Europe it has some importance in fisheries as a food fish.
The Greenland halibut or Greenland turbot belongs to the family Pleuronectidae, and is the only species of the genus Reinhardtius. It is a predatory fish that mostly ranges at depths between 500 and 1,000 m (1,600–3,300 ft), and is found in the cold northern Atlantic, northern Pacific, and Arctic Oceans.
The European flounder is a flatfish of European coastal waters from the White Sea in the north to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea in the south. It has been introduced into the United States and Canada accidentally through transport in ballast water. It is caught and used for human consumption.
The spiny turbots are a family, Psettodidae, of relatively large, primitive flatfish found in the tropical waters of the east Atlantic and Indo-Pacific. The family contains just three species, all in the same genus, Psettodes. The common name comes from the presence of spines in the dorsal and anal fins, which may indicate an evolutionary relationship with the Perciformes. They are less asymmetrical than other flatfish, although the region around the eyes is twisted. They reach lengths of 55–80 cm (22–31 in).
Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than 200 metres (660 ft) deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally epipelagic fish, inhabiting the sunlit epipelagic zone. Coastal fish can be contrasted with oceanic fish or offshore fish, which inhabit the deep seas beyond the continental shelves.
The grey gurnard is a species of ray-finned fish from the family Triglidae, the gurnards and sea robins. It is native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Black Sea. It is caught as a food fish and is known for producing sounds. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Eutrigla.
Scophthalmus is a genus of turbots, relatively large flatfish native to the northeast Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea.
Tenacibaculum soleae is a bacterium. It is a fish pathogen for some species of sole, brill and turbot, with a particularly high mortality rate. It is Gram-negative, rod-shaped and gliding. Its type strain is LL04 12.1.7T.
Zeugopterus regius, Eckström's topknot or Bloch's topknot, is a small, left eyed flatfish in the turbot family Scophthalmidae found in European waters.
Tenacibaculum is a Gram-negative and motile bacterial genus from the family of Flavobacteriaceae.
The Egyptian sole is a species of flatfish in the true sole family, Soleidae. It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the Mediterranean Sea, and is now colonising the Red Sea. It often semi-immerses itself in the substrate. The upper side is greyish-brown while the underside is white. It grows to a maximum length of about 70 cm (28 in). This fish is used for human consumption and is prized as a food fish. It is caught mostly by trawling on the seabed.
Solea senegalensis, the Senegalese sole, is a species of flatfish from the family of the true soles, the Soleidae, from the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea.
