| Main Ref. | Nielsen, J.G., 1984 |
| Appearance refers to | Male; Female |
| Bones in OsteoBase | Skull, Spine |
| Specialized organs | no special organs |
| Different appearance | males alike females |
| Different colors | males alike females |
| Remarks | Females larger than males (Ref. 6005). |
| Striking features | flatfish |
| Body shape lateral | fusiform / normal |
| Cross section | flattened |
| Dorsal head profile | more or less straight |
| Type of eyes | more or less normal |
| Type of mouth/snout | more or less normal |
| Position of mouth | superior |
| Diagnosis |
Body oval and flat, but thicker than in most other flatfishes. Mouth large with strong teeth; maxillary extends well beyond hind edge of lower eye; both eyes on left or right side; upper eye lying immediately below dorsal edge; gill rakers not developed. Dorsal fin origin well posterior to eyes; anterior fin rays spinous; lateral line almost straight. Color usually brown or grey, sometimes with 4 broad, dark crossbars. Dorsal, anal and caudal fin tips black. Blind side occasionally partially colored. (Other sources of morphological data: Refs. 591, 529, 4416, 5997 and 6000). |
| Ease of Identification |
| Lateral Lines | 1 Interrupted: No |
| Scales on lateral line | 61 - 77 |
| Pored lateral line scales | |
| Scales in lateral series | |
| Scale rows above lateral line | |
| Scale rows below lateral line | |
| Scales around caudal peduncle | 32 - 38 |
| Barbels | 0 |
| Gill clefts (sharks/rays only) | absent |
| Gill rakers | |
| on lower limb | |
| on upper limb | |
| total | 0 - 0 |
| Vertebrae | |
| preanal | |
| total | 23 - 25 |
| Attributes | extending over most of the back length |
| Fins number | 1 |
| Finlets No. | Dorsal 0 - 0 |
| Ventral 0 - 0 | |
| Spines total | 9 - 11 |
| Soft-rays total | 38 - 45 |
| Adipose fin | absent |
| Attributes | more or less truncate; more or less normal |
| Fins number | 1 |
| Spines total | 1 - 1 |
| Soft-rays total | 33 - 43 |
| Pectoral | Attributes more or less normal |
| Spines 0 | |
| Soft-rays 13 - 16 | |
| Pelvics | Attributes more or less normal |
| Position thoracic behind origin of D1 | |
| Spines 1 | |
| Soft-rays 5 - 5 |