Achirus lineatus
Lined Sole
NS
G5
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Pleuronectfiormes (Flatfishes)
Achiridae (American Soles)
Achirus
Achirus lineatus (Lined Sole)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
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Characters
Nearly circular in profile, with a matting of dermal folds and fimbriae on blind side of head, an interbranchial foramen, and pectoral fin on ocular side. Mouth is subterminal, and snout slightly overhangs jaws. Jaw teeth are villiform and present in blind side of jaws only. Opercular opening is greatly restricted but confluent ventrally. Measurements are expressed as percent of SL: head length 28.4%–31.1%, interorbital width 0.9%–2.2%, caudal fin length 28.7%–35.7%, body depth 65.2%–70%. Small rudimentary pectoral fin is located above gill slit on ocular side and consists of 3 to 8 rays. Dorsal fin has 49 to 60 rays, and anal fin has 38 to 46 rays. Ocular-side pelvic fin has 5 rays and is continuous with anal fin. Blind-side pelvic fin inserts anterior to ocular-side pelvic fin and has 5 rays. Entire body and most of head are covered with small ctenoid scales, including both sides of dorsal and anal fin rays. Fimbriae run along margins of mouth on ocular side and are broadly distributed on blind side of head.
Ocular side is olive to brown, with darker spots and blotches and very narrow stripes evenly arranged along body. Blind side is white anteriorly, grading to light brown posteriorly. Tufts of dark-colored cirri are randomly distributed on both sides of body.
Distribution
Coastal waters in the western Atlantic from the east coast of South Carolina to Argentina, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Antilles.
Habitat Associations
Coastal waters, estuaries; generally at salinities greater than 15‰
Biology
Food consists of polychaetes and gammarid amphipods.
Maximum known size is 230 mm TL.
Adults occur mainly in brackish or hyper-saline lagoons (Ref. 5217), on sandy-muddy bottoms of estuaries and in the littoral zone where it hides itself leaving just its eyes out. Can easily disguise itself in the environment. Feed on worms, crustaceans and small fishes. Juveniles have a brief planktonic life, moving quickly to the benthic stage. Growth rate is relatively slow (Ref. 35237).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2018-05-01. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial.
References
Jordan and Evermann 1898
Hildebrand 1955
Springer and Woodburn 1960
Hoese and Moore 1977
Hoese and Moore 1998
Robins and Ray 1986
Cervigón 1993a
Munroe 2002e
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Keith, P., P.-Y. Le Bail and P. Planquette (2000) Atlas des poissons d'eau douce de Guyane. Tome 2, Fascicule I: Batrachoidiformes, Mugiliformes, Beloniformes, Cyprinodontiformes, Synbranchiformes, Perciformes, Pleuronectiformes, Tetraodontiformes. Collection Patrimoines Naturels 43(I): 286p. Paris: Publications scientifiques du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle.
Figueiredo, J.L. and N.A. Menezes (2000) Manual de peixes marinhos do sudeste do Brasil. VI.Teleostei (5). Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo. Brazil. 116 p.
Joyeux, J.-C., T. Giarrizzo, R.M. Macieira, H.L. Spach and T. Vaske Jr. (2008) Length-weight relationships for Brazilian estaurine fishes along a latitudinal gradient. J. Appl. Ichthyol. 24(1):1-6.
Patzner, R.A. (2008) Reproductive strategies of fish. pp. 311-350. In Rocha, M.J., A. Arukwe and B.G. Kapoor (eds). Fish reproduction: cytology, biology and ecology. Science Publisher, Inc. Oxford. 631 p.
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