Pleuronectidae, also known as righteye flounders, are a family of

flounder Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, tho ...

s. They are called "righteye flounders" because most species lie on the sea bottom on their left sides, with both eyes on their right sides. The

Paralichthyidae Large-tooth flounders or sand flounders are a family, Paralichthyidae, of flounders. The family contains 14 genera with a total of about 110 species. They lie on the sea bed on their right side; both eyes are always on the left side of the head, ...

are the opposite, with their eyes on the left side. A small number of species in Pleuronectidae can also have their eyes on the left side, notably the members of the genus ''

Platichthys ''Platichthys'' is a genus of flatfish native to the North Pacific and North Atlantic oceans. Despite being in the family Pleuronectidae Pleuronectidae, also known as righteye flounders, are a family of flounders. They are called "righteye ...

''. Their

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage * Dorsal co ...

and

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as s ...

s are long and continuous, with the dorsal fin extending forward onto the head. Females lay eggs that float in mid-water until the larvae develop, and they sink to the bottom. They are found on the bottoms of oceans around the world, with some species, such as the

Atlantic halibut The Atlantic halibut (''Hippoglossus hippoglossus'') is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. They are demersal fish living on or near sand, gravel or clay bottoms at depths of between . The halibut is among the largest teleost (bony) fish in ...

, ''Hippoglossus hippoglossus'', being found down to . The smaller species eat sea-floor invertebrates such as

polychaete Polychaeta () is a paraphyletic class of generally marine annelid worms, commonly called bristle worms or polychaetes (). Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are ...

s and

crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean gro ...

s, but the larger righteye flounders, such as ''H. hippoglossus'', which grows up to in length, feed on other fishes and

cephalopod A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda ( Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, ...

s, as well. They include many important commercially fished species, including not only the various fish called

s, but also the

European plaice The European plaice (''Pleuronectes platessa''), commonly referred to as simply plaice, is a species of marine flatfish in the genus Pleuronectes of the family Pleuronectidae. Description The European plaice is characterized, on their dorsal ...

, the

halibut Halibut is the common name for three flatfish in the genera '' Hippoglossus'' and '' Reinhardtius'' from the family of right-eye flounders and, in some regions, and less commonly, other species of large flatfish. The word is derived from ''h ...

s, the lemon sole, the

common dab The common dab (''Limanda limanda'') 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 . ...

, the Pacific Dover sole, and the flukes. The name of the family is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

πλευρά (''pleura''), meaning "rib" or "side", and νηκτόν (''nekton''), meaning "swimming".

Classification

The family has four subfamilies: *

Pleuronectinae Pleuronectinae is a subfamily of fish in the family Pleuronectidae, comprising 27 genera and 62 extant species (there are also fossil species, including two ''Clidoderma''). Members of the subfamily are demersal carnivores that live in arctic and ...

– 27 genera and about 60 species in the Northern Hemisphere (includes

Eopsettinae The Eopsettinae are a subfamily of fish in the family Pleuronectidae. Genera * ''Atheresthes'' * ''Eopsetta ''Eopsetta'' is a genus of righteye flounders native to the North Pacific Ocean. Species There are currently two recognized species ...

Hippoglossinae The Hippoglossinae are a subfamily of fish in the family Pleuronectidae. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words ''hippos'', "horse", and ''glossa'', "tongue". Genera * ''Clidoderma'' * ''Eopsetta'' * ''Hippoglossus'' * '' Lyopsetta'' ...

Hippoglossoidinae The Hippoglossoidinae are a subfamily of fish in the family Pleuronectidae. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words ''hippos'', "horse", ''glossa'', "tongue", and ''eidos'', "form, likeness". Genera * '' Acanthopsetta'' * ''Cleisthenes' ...

, and

Lyopsettinae The slender sole (''Lyopsetta exilis'') is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish that lives on bottoms near rocky areas at depths of between . Its native habitat is the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast, from the mouth ...

recognized by some as valid subfamilies) *

Paralichthodinae The peppered flounder (''Paralichthodes algoensis'') is a flatfish of the family Paralichthodidae and the only species of the genus ''Paralichthodes''. It is a demersal fish that lives on sandy and muddy bottoms in subtropical waters, at depths ...

– one species off

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number ...

Poecilopsettinae The Poecilopsettidae are a Family (biology), family of flatfish in the order Pleuronectiformes, comprising three genera and 21 species. Species are typically demersal, living on seawater, marine bottoms at depths between in the Indo-Pacific and ...

– three genera and about 20 species in tropical and subtropical oceans *

Rhombosoleinae Rhombosoleidae is a Family (biology), family of flatfish in the order Pleuronectiformes, comprising nine genera and 19 species; all members of this family are right eye flounders with asymmetrical pelvic fins. Species are typically demersal, livin ...

– nine genera and about 20 species in the Southern Hemisphere In some classifications, the last three subfamilies are raised to the level of families. Image:Hippoglossus hippoglossus.jpg,

, ''Hippoglossus hippoglossus'' Image:Reinhardtius hippoglossoides.jpg,

Greenland halibut The Greenland halibut or Greenland turbot (''Reinhardtius hippoglossoides'') belongs to the family Pleuronectidae (the right-eye flounders), and is the only species of the genus ''Reinhardtius''. It is a predatory fish that mostly ranges at dep ...

, ''Reinhardtius hippoglossoides'' Image:Hippoglossoides platessoides.jpg,

American plaice The American plaice, American sole or long rough dab (''Hippoglossoides platessoides'') is a North Atlantic flatfish that belongs, along with other right-eyed flounders, to the family Pleuronectidae. In the northwest Atlantic (''H. p. platessoide ...

, ''H. platessoides'' Image:Glyptocephalus cynoglossus.jpg,

Witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have u ...

, ''Glyptocephalus cynoglossus'' Image:Microstomus kitt 1.jpg, Lemon sole, ''Microstomus kitt'' Image:Limanda limanda.jpg,

Common dab The common dab (''Limanda limanda'') 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 . ...

, ''Limanda limanda'' Image:Parophrys vetulus 1.jpg,

English sole The English sole (''Parophrys vetulus'') is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish that lives on sandy and muddy bottoms in estuaries and near shore areas, at depths of up to . It reaches up to in length, and can weigh ...

, ''Parophrys vetulus'' Image:Psettichthys melanostictus.gif,

Pacific sand sole The Pacific sand sole (''Psettichthys melanostictus''), also known as simply sand sole, is a flatfish species inhabiting the northeastern Pacific waters where it lives on sandy bottoms. The only species in the genus, ''Psettichthys'', it ranges f ...

, ''Psettichthys melanostictus'' Image:Poecilopsetta beanii.jpg,

Deepwater dab The deepwater dab (''Poecilopsetta beanii'') is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a bathydemersal fish that lives on bottoms at depths of . It can reach in length. Its native habitat is the western Atlantic and Caribbean, from New E ...

, ''Poecilopsetta beanii'' Image:Rhombosolea retiaria by Frank Edward Clarke 2.jpg,

Black flounder The black flounder (''Rhombosolea retiaria'') is a flatfish of the genus ''Rhombosolea'', found around New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses� ...

, ''Rhombosolea retiaria''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q647087 Marine fish families Taxa named by Georges Cuvier Fish of Korea

Classification

See also

References