The Mediterranean scaldfish (''Arnoglossus laterna''), also known as the scaldfish, is a species of

benthic The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from ancient Greek, βένθος (bénthos), meaning "t ...

left eyed

flatfish A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish order (biology), order Pleuronectiformes, also called the Heterosomata, sometimes classified as a suborder of Perciformes. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the ...

belonging to the family

Bothidae Bothidae or lefteye flounders are a family of flounders. They are called "lefteye flounders" because most species lie on the sea bottom on their right sides, with both eyes on their left sides. The family is also distinguished by the presence of ...

. It is found in the eastern Atlantic of Europe and Africa as well as the Mediterranean, and is of minor interest to fisheries.

Description

The Mediterranean scaldfish is a small flatfish with a slender oval body, a small head with large eyes placed on the left side of the head. It has an oblique mouth which is moderately sized. 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 conv ...

has its origin in front of its upper eye, the first dozen or so dorsal fin rays are partially fee from the fin membrane, although they are not elongated. The

pelvic fin Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral surface of fish. The paired pelvic fins are homologous to the hindlimbs of tetrapods. Structure and function Structure In actinopterygians, the pelvic fin consists of two en ...

on the eyed side has a long bas and is larger than its equivalent on its blind side. It has 87-93 rays in its dorsal fin and 65-74 rays in the

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

. Its scales are thin and fragile and there are usually very few on its body. It is pale brownish grey in colour with dark spots on its body and fins, with a dusky spot on the pelvic fins. 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 epithelial ...

has 50-56 scales. It is a

sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

species in which the males are distinguished by having an unusual appearance with of certain fin rays being elongated. This species grows up to 25 cm in total length.

Distribution

The Mediterranean scaldfish has a wide distribution which extends from

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

in the north southwards along the eastern Atlantic Ocean to Angola. It also extends into the

Mediterranean Sea 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 the ea ...

and the

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, Roma ...

, as well as

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

Habitat and biology

The Mediterranean scaldfish is found on the upper part of the

continental shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...

where it has a

habit on mixed or muddy substrates down to about 200m and feeds on small fishes and invertebrates. Their breeding season is from May to August. It

metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

into an adult from a larva when it is between 16mm and 23mm in length and off the coast of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

it may live for up to eight years.

Fisheries

The Mediterranean scaldfish is of minor commercial importance and the catch tends to be sold in local markets. In the northeastern Mediterranean it is normally discarded from bottom trawl catches. It is caught in commercial trawlers as by-catch in the eastern central Atlantic but again it is usually discarded. Some of this by-catch by industrial fisheries is utilized by artisanal fisheries and is consumed in fresh or dried form.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q585976 Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Fish of the North Sea Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish of the Black Sea Fish of Europe Scaldfish Fish described in 1792