Solea Senegalensis
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The Senegalese sole (''Solea senegalensis'') is a species of
flatfish A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish Order (biology), suborder Pleuronectoidei, also called the Heterosomata. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around ...
in the family
Soleidae The true soles are a family, Soleidae, of flatfishes. It includes saltwater and brackish water species in the East Atlantic, Indian Ocean, West and Central Pacific Ocean, and the mediterranean sea. Freshwater species are found in Africa, souther ...
. It is found in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea.


Description

The Senegalese sole is very similar to the
common sole The common sole, Dover sole, or black sole (''Solea solea'') is a species of flatfish in the family Soleidae. It is one of the largest fish in the '' Solea'' genus. It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the northern Atlantic and the Mediter ...
and like it, it has a flattened, oval body with the
dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...
starting on the upper profile of the head to the front of the upper eye. The dorsal fin has 73–86 rays, the
anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...
has 61–74 rays, and there is a well-developed
pectoral fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish aquatic locomotion, swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the vertebral column ...
on each side of its body which has 7–10 rays. The
caudal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported only ...
is attached to the last rays of the dorsal and anal fins by a narrow membrane. There are numerous small and hair-like fringes on the blind side of the head, and the distance between the upper eye and the dorsal profile of the head is greater than the diameter of the eye. The anterior nostril on the blind side is surrounded by a small ridge, but is not enlarged. The
lateral line The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelia ...
is made up of 120–138 pored scales. The Senegalese sole is greyish brown in colour on the eyed side, marked with numerous blue spots (which tend to disappear in dead specimens); the blind side is whitish. The pectoral fin on the eyed side has a nearly black membrane, which contrasts with the cream-coloured fin rays. This feature also allows one to distinguish between this species and the common sole; the latter has a neat black spot close to the margin of the pectoral fin instead. The Senegalese sole grows to a
standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of fish anatomy, their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is ...
of 60 cm, but is more commonly about 45 cm.


Taxonomy

Over much of its range, the Senegalese sole is
sympatric In biology, two closely related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter each other. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct spe ...
with the common sole, and it has been considered a
subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
by some authors in the past (as ''Solea vulgaris melanochira''). It is, however, more closely related to the east Mediterranean Egyptian sole ('' Solea aegyptiaca'') than it is to the common sole, and where these two species' ranges meet there is a
hybrid zone A hybrid zone exists where the ranges of two interbreeding species or diverged intraspecific lineages meet and cross-fertilize. Hybrid zones can form ''in situ'' due to the evolution of a new lineage but generally they result from secondary cont ...
, with hybrids being detected from the Gulf of Lions and the coasts of Tunisia.


Distribution

The Selegalese sole originally occurred only in the eastern Atlantic, from southern Great Britain and Ireland (where it is rare) to Angola, including the
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
. It is thought to have invaded the Mediterranean Sea via
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
in the early 20th century. It expanded quickly in the western basin; and now is now found in places as far east as the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara.Atlas of Exotic Fishes in the Mediterranean Sea (''Solea senegalensis''). 2nd Edition. 2021. 366p. CIESM Publishers, Paris, Monaco.https://ciesm.org/atlas/fishes_2nd_edition/Solea_senegalensis.pdf It is, of course, also found off the southern coast of the Mediterranean, including Tunisia, where it is an important resource.


Habitat and biology

The Selegalese sole is a
demersal The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer o ...
flatfish A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish Order (biology), suborder Pleuronectoidei, also called the Heterosomata. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around ...
which occurs on sandy or muddy bottoms of varied habitats, from brackish lagoons and shallow waters to coastal regions where the water can be 100 m in depth. The adults feed mainly on small benthic invertebrates like
polychaete Polychaeta () is a paraphyletic class of generally marine Annelid, annelid worms, common name, commonly called bristle worms or polychaetes (). Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called c ...
s and
bivalve Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class (biology), class of aquatic animal, aquatic molluscs (marine and freshwater) that have laterally compressed soft bodies enclosed b ...
s, as well as small crustaceans. Females attain sexual maturity at around 3 years of age and may reach a total length of 30 cm. Spawning takes place during the summer, peaking in June around the
Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...
, when the water temperature is between 15 °C and 20 °C.


Human interaction

In Europe, both the common and the Senegalese sole are landed and marketed, and there is little distinction made between them in official statistics. There are, however, geographical preferences: the common sole is preferred in northern Europe, and the Senegalese sole is preferred in more southernly areas. These preferences are reflected in the market price, which is higher for the common sole in northern and Western Europe, and higher for the Senegalese sole in southern Europe. The flesh is sold fresh, normally as fillets; the smaller fillets go to domestic consumers directly, while the larger ones are sold to commercial establishments such as hotels and restaurants. The Senegalese sole is widely produced in aquaculture in Portugal and Spain. Abstract


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q849278 Soleidae Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish described in 1858 Taxa named by Johann Jakob Kaup