Portuguese Sole

The Portuguese sole grows to a standard length of about 35 cm (14 in). The general shape is oval, tapering somewhat towards the tail. Like other flatfish, the body is flattened laterally and the fish lies on its side, with both eyes on the right side; the upper eye is slightly in front of the lower one. The dorsal fin starts from the edge of the head and has 79 to 83 soft rays. The anal fin has 57 to 67 soft rays and it and the dorsal fin are continuous with the caudal fin. The upper side of the fish is greyish-brown, with black blotches, arranged in indistinct longitudinal rows. The underside of the fish is whitish.

The Portuguese sole is native to the tropical and sub-tropical eastern Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from Portugal to Angola. It is also present in the Cape Verde Islands and São Tomé and Príncipe. It was first recorded in the Mediterranean Sea in the early 1960s along the coast of Spain and has since extended its range to Libyan waters. It is a demersal fish, living on, or just above, the seabed at depths down to about 160 m (525 ft), on sandy and muddy substrates.