WHATSTHATFISH
Bony fish

Pacific Halibut

Hippoglossus stenolepis

Also known as: Alaska Halibut, Flounder, Halibut

LCLeast ConcernIUCN Red List, 2021
Adult
@fishx6 · Arizona Aquarium, United States · September 20191 / 2
01

Overview

Found partially buried, or out foraging for food, over silty, mud and sand bottoms, of inner reef flats and seaward reefs, in shallow, to very deep waters in the winter.
Widespread North Pacific

Named because the right eye has migrated to the left side of the body

Flatfish, Soles and Flounders are placed in their families by location of their eyes. Their are both left eye and right eye dominant families.
Flatfish bury themselves in sand to hide from predators and use their eyes as periscopes as these can rotate 180 degrees.
During pelagic larval stage these fish are not flat but become so as they grow, their bodies flatten, and one eye migrates across the head next to the other eye.

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How to identify

COLOURS
Body shape
flat

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Habitat & where to find it

  • Range · Northwest Pacific, Northeast Pacific
  • Country only · 2
LIVES IN

Found partially buried, or out foraging for food, over silty, mud and sand bottoms, of inner reef flats and seaward reefs, in shallow, to very deep waters in the winter.

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Adult photos 2

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Discussion

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    ALL STAGES
    FOR THE MARINE-BIOLOGY CURIOUS

    Deep dive

    Taxonomy

    1. kingdomAnimalia
    2. phylumChordata
    3. classTeleostei
    4. orderPleuronectiformes
    5. familyPleuronectidae
    6. genusHippoglossus
    7. speciesHippoglossus stenolepis Schmidt, 1904

    SourcesWoRMSFishBase

    06

    More in the family

    Pleuronectiformes