The peppered flounder (''Paralichthodes algoensis'') is a
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 migratin ...
of the family
Paralichthodidae
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 ...
and the only species of the genus ''Paralichthodes''.
It 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 laye ...
fish that lives on sandy and muddy bottoms in
subtropical waters, at depths of up to . Its native habitat is the southeastern
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 an ...
and the western
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...
, specifically the African coastline from
Mossel Bay
Mossel Bay ( af, Mosselbaai) is a harbour town of about 99,000 people on the Southern Cape (or Garden Route) of South Africa. It is an important tourism and farming region of the Western Cape Province. Mossel Bay lies 400 kilometres east of the ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
, to
Delagoa Bay
Maputo Bay ( pt, Baía de Maputo), formerly also known as Delagoa Bay from ''Baía da Lagoa'' in Portuguese, is an inlet of the Indian Ocean on the coast of Mozambique, between 25° 40' and 26° 20' S, with a length from north to south of over 90&n ...
,
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Mala ...
. It grows up to in length.
Description
The peppered flounder is a right-eyed flounder with an elongated, oval body. Its upper surface is brownish grey with small dark spots and its underside is white. The
lateral line is equally developed on both sides. It has a relatively large, symmetrical mouth.
References
peppered flounder
Fish of Mozambique
Marine fish of South Africa
peppered flounder
Taxa named by John Dow Fisher Gilchrist
{{Pleuronectiformes-stub