English sole

English sole
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Pleuronectiformes
Family: Pleuronectidae
Subfamily: Pleuronectinae
Genus: Parophrys
Girard, 1854
Species:
P. vetulus
Binomial name
Parophrys vetulus
Girard, 1854
Range of the English sole
Synonyms
  • Pleuronectes vetulus (Girard, 1854)
  • Parophrys hubbardii Gill, 1862
  • Pleuronectes digrammus Günther, 1862

English sole (Parophrys vetulus) is a species of flatfish in 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 550 metres (1,800 ft). It reaches up to 57 centimetres (22 in) in length, and can weigh up to 1.5 kilograms (3.3 lb). Its native habitat is the eastern Pacific, stretching from the coast of Baja California in the south to the Bering Sea in the north.[2][3]

English sole is an important commercial fish, primarily caught off Washington, Oregon and California. Though biomass is increasing, catches have been declining since the 1960s and are currently almost at an all-time low.[4]

English sole is known in Spanish as platija limón, or lemon sole, a name by which it is also known in English,[4][5] though the true lemon sole is a separate species, Microstomus kitt.

  1. ^ Bryan, M.; Spies, I.; Stevenson, D.; Munroe, T.A. (2021). "Parophrys vetulus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T158632774A158638071. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T158632774A158638071.en. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  2. ^ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2018). "Parophrys vetulus month-February". FishBase.
  3. ^ Stewart, Ian J (25 May 2005). "Study of the US English sole resource 2005" (PDF). US National Marine Fisheries Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 9, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  4. ^ a b "English Sole (Parophrys vetulus)". FishWatch. US National Marine Fisheries Service. Archived from the original on 26 December 2007. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
  5. ^ "Parophrys vetulus Girard, 1854". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2009-05-11.