''Cynoglossus arel'', commonly known as the largescale tonguesole, is a species of

tonguefish Tonguefishes are flatfish in the family Cynoglossidae. They are distinguished by the presence of a long hook on the snout overhanging the mouth, and the absence of pectoral fins. Their eyes are both on the left side of their bodies, which also ...

. The eyed side of the fish is uniform brown, with a dark patch on the gill cover, and its blind side is white. They are harmless to humans and predominantly feed on bottom-living invertebrates.

Distribution

It is commonly found in muddy and sandy bottoms of the Indo-West Pacific and

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 t ...

, from the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...

to Sri Lanka and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, and as far north as the south coast of Japan, down to depths of 125 metres.

Description

They have no dorsal spines, 116-130 dorsal soft rays, no anal spines, 85-98 anal soft rays, and 50-57 vertebrae. The average size of this species is 30 cm (12 in) and the max length is 40 cm (16 in).

References

Cynoglossidae Fish described in 1801 {{Pleuronectiformes-stub