The brill (''Scophthalmus rhombus'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

flatfish 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 ...

in the turbot family ( Scophthalmidae) of the order Pleuronectiformes. Brill can be found in the northeast

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

, and

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

, primarily in deeper offshore waters. Brill have slender bodies, brown covered with lighter and darker coloured flecks, excluding the tailfin; the underside of the fish is usually cream coloured or pinkish white. Like other flatfish the brill has the ability to match its colour to the surroundings. Brill weigh up to and can reach a length of , but are less than half that on average. Part of the

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through c ...

of the fish is not connected to the fin membrane, giving the fish a frilly appearance. They are sometimes confused with the turbot (''Scophthalmus maximus''), which is more diamond-shaped. The two species are related and can produce hybrids. On the west coast of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

(outside the range of ''Scophthalmus rhombus'') local fisherman refer to the

petrale sole The Petrale sole (''Eopsetta jordani'') is an edible flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish that lives on sandy bottoms, usually in deep water, down to depths of about . Males can grow to in length, females to , and they ...

, ''Eopsetta jordani'', as brill. The flesh is lighter in texture, more friable - even "floury" - and considerably less rich in flavour than the turbot, which is preferred by chefs. :fr:Scophthalmus rhombus

Name in other languages

Sources

Scophthalmus rhombus
''Marine Life Encyclopedia'' * *

References

External links

in "What Am I Eating?" (a food dictionary) Scophthalmus Commercial fish Marine fish of Europe Fish of the Black Sea Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Pleuronectiformes-stub