The true soles are a family, Soleidae, of flatfishes, and include species that live in salt water and fresh water. They are bottom-dwelling fishes feeding on small crustaceans and other invertebrates. Other flatfishes are also known as soles.

Soles begin life as bilaterally symmetric larvae, with an eye on each side of the head. But during development the left eye moves around onto the right side of the head. Adult soles lie on their left (blind) side on the sea floor, often covered in mud which, in combination with their dark colours, makes them hard to spot.

Soles (along with flounders) were observed by the Bathyscaphe Trieste at the bottom of the Mariana Trench at a depth of 35,798 feet (10,911 m).

Many soles are important food species: the Common sole, Solea solea, is popular in northern Europe and the Mediterranean.

Species

FishBase lists 135 species in 28 genera but comments, "The taxonomy of this family needs revision."^[1]

• Genus Achiroides
  • Achiroides leucorhynchos (Bleeker, 1851).
  • Achiroides melanorhynchus (Bleeker, 1851).
• Genus Aesopia
  • Unicorn sole, Aesopia cornuta (Kaup, 1858).
    

    

    Unicorn sole, Aesopia cornuta
• Genus Aseraggodes
  • Aseraggodes bahamondei (Randall & Meléndez, 1987).
  • Aseraggodes borehami (Randall, 1996).
  • Aseraggodes crypticus (Randall & Allen, 2007).^[2]
  • Aseraggodes cyaneus (Alcock, 1890).
  • Aseraggodes dubius (Weber, 1913).
  • Aseraggodes filiger (Weber, 1913).
  • Aseraggodes firmisquamis (Randall & Bartsch, 2005).
  • Aseraggodes guttulatus (Kaup, 1858).
  • Southern sole, Aseraggodes haackeanus (Steindachner, 1883).
  • Aseraggodes heraldi (Randall & Bartsch, 2005).
  • Herre's sole, Aseraggodes herrei (Seale, 1940).
  • Aseraggodes holcomi (Randall, 2002).
  • Aseraggodes kaianus (Günther, 1880).
  • Tailed sole, Aseraggodes klunzingeri (Weber, 1907).
  • Aseraggodes kobensis (Steindachner, 1896).
  • Narrowbanded sole, Aseraggodes macleayanus (Ramsay, 1881).
  • Mottled sole, Aseraggodes melanostictus (Peters, 1877).
  • Aseraggodes microlepidotus (Fowler, 1946).
  • Aseraggodes normani (Chabanaud, 1930).
  • Aseraggodes ocellatus (Weed, 1961).
  • Ocellated sole, Aseraggodes persimilis (Günther, 1909).
  • Aseraggodes ramsayi (Ogilby, 1889).
  • Aseraggodes sinusarabici (Chabanaud, 1931).
  • Smith's sole, Aseraggodes smithi (Woods, 1966).
  • Aseraggodes texturatus (Weber, 1913).
  • Aseraggodes therese (Randall, 1996).
  • Whitaker's sole, Aseraggodes whitakeri (Woods, 1966).
• Genus Austroglossus
  • West coast sole, Austroglossus microlepis (Bleeker, 1863).
  • Mud sole, Austroglossus pectoralis (Kaup, 1858).
• Genus Bathysolea
  • Bathysolea lactea (Roule, 1916).
  • Bathysolea lagarderae (Quéro & Desoutter, 1990).
  • Bathysolea polli (Chabanaud, 1950).
  • Deepwater sole, Bathysolea profundicola (Vaillant, 1888).
• Genus Brachirus
  • Brachirus aenea (Smith, 1931).
  • Annular sole, Brachirus annularis (Fowler, 1934).
  • Brachirus aspilos (Bleeker, 1852).
  • Brachirus dicholepis (Peters, 1877).
  • Mekong blind sole, Brachirus elongatus (Day, 1877).
  • Brachirus harmandi (Sauvage, 1878).
  • Brachirus heterolepis (Bleeker, 1856).
  • Brachirus macrolepis (Bleeker, 1858).
  • Tufted sole, Brachirus muelleri (Steindachner, 1879).
  • Oriental sole, Brachirus orientalis (Bloch & Schneider, 1801).
  • Pan sole, Brachirus pan (Hamilton, 1822).
  • Brachirus panoides (Bleeker, 1851).
  • Brachirus siamensis (Sauvage, 1878).
  • Brachirus sorsogonensis (Evermann & Seale, 1907).
  • Brachirus swinhonis (Steindachner, 1867).
• Genus Buglossidium
  • Solenette, Buglossidium luteum (Risso, 1810).
    

    

    Solenette, Buglossidium luteum
• Genus Dagetichthys
  • Dagetichthys lakdoensis (Stauch & Blanc, 1964).
• Genus Dicologlossa
  • Wedge sole, Dicologlossa cuneata (Moreau, 1881).
  • Ocellated wedge sole, Dicologlossa hexophthalma (Bennett, 1831).
• Genus Heteromycteris
  • Cape sole, Heteromycteris capensis (Kaup, 1858).
  • Hook-nosed sole, Heteromycteris hartzfeldii (Bleeker, 1853).
  • Bamboo sole, Heteromycteris japonicus (Bleeker, 1860).
  • Heteromycteris matsubarai (Ochiai, 1963).
  • Eyed sole, Heteromycteris oculus (Alcock, 1889).
  • True sole, Heteromycteris proboscideus (Chabanaud, 1925).
• Genus Leptachirus^[3]
  • Leptachirus alleni (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus bensbach (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus darwinensis (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus kikori (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus lorentz (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus polylepis (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus robertsi (Randall, 2007).^[3]
  • Leptachirus triramus (Randall, 2007).^[3]
• Genus Liachirus
  • Liachirus melanospilos (Bleeker, 1854).
  • Liachirus whitleyi (Chabanaud, 1950).
• Genus Microchirus
  • Microchirus azevia (Brito Capello, 1867).
  • Lusitanian sole, Microchirus boscanion (Chabanaud, 1926).
  • Frechkop's sole, Microchirus frechkopi (Chabanaud, 1952).
  • Foureyed sole, Microchirus ocellatus (Weed, 1961).
  • Bastard sole, Microchirus theophila (Risso, 1810).
  • Thickback sole, Microchirus variegatus (Donovan, 1808).
  • Banded sole, Microchirus wittei (Chabanaud, 1950).
• Genus Monochirus
  • Whiskered sole, Monochirus hispidus (Rafinesque, 1814).
  • Monochirus trichodactylus (Linnaeus, 1758).
• Genus Parachirus
  • Parachirus diringeri (Quéro, 1997).
  • Dwarf sole, Parachirus xenicus (Matsubara & Ochiai, 1963).
• Genus Paradicula
  • Paradicula setifer (Paradice, 1927).
• Genus Pardachirus
  • Piebald sole, Pardachirus balius (Randall & Mee, 1994).
  • Southern peacock sole, Pardachirus hedleyi (Ogilby, 1916).
  • Finless sole, Pardachirus marmoratus (Lacépède, 1802).
  • Persian carpet sole, Pardachirus morrowi (Chabanaud, 1954).
  • Peacock sole, Pardachirus pavoninus (Lacépède, 1802).
  • Estuary sole, Pardachirus poropterus (Bleeker, 1851).
• Genus Pegusa
  • Cadenat's sole, Pegusa cadenati (Chabanaud, 1954).
  • Adriatic sole, Pegusa impar (Bennett, 1831).
  • Sand sole, Pegusa lascaris (Risso, 1810).
  • Cyclope sole, Pegusa triophthalma (Bleeker, 1863).
• Genus Phyllichthys
  • Spotted sole, Phyllichthys punctatus (McCulloch, 1916).
  • Phyllichthys sclerolepis (Macleay, 1878).
  • Phyllichthys sejunctus (Whitley, 1935).
• Genus Rendahlia
  • Rendahlia jaubertensis (Rendahl, 1921).
• Genus Rhinosolea
  • Rhinosolea microlepidota (Fowler, 1946).
• Genus Solea
  • Egyptian sole, Solea aegyptiaca (Chabanaud, 1927).
  • Blackhand sole, Solea bleekeri (Boulenger, 1898).
  • Solea capensis (Kaup, 1858).
  • Elongate sole, Solea elongata (Day, 1877).
  • Solea fulvomarginata (Gilchrist, 1904).
  • Solea heinii (Steindachner, 1903).
  • Solea humilis (Cantor, 1849).
  • Ovate sole, Solea ovata (Richardson, 1846).
  • Senegalese sole, Solea senegalensis (Kaup, 1858).
  • Common sole, Solea solea (Linnaeus, 1758).
    

    

    Common sole, Solea solea
  • Stanaland's sole, Solea stanalandi (Randall & McCarthy, 1989).
• Genus Soleichthys
  • Soleichthys heterorhinos (Bleeker, 1856).
  • Soleichthys maculosus (Muchhala & Munroe, 2004).^[4]
  • Small-head sole, Soleichthys microcephalus (Günther, 1862).
  • Soleichthys siammakuti (Wongratana, 1975).
  • Soleichthys tubifera (Peters, 1876).
• Genus Strabozebrias
  • Harrowed sole, Strabozebrias cancellatus (McCulloch, 1916).
• Genus Synaptura
  • Kaup's sole, Synaptura albomaculata (Kaup, 1858).
  • Guinean sole, Synaptura cadenati (Chabanaud, 1954).
  • Commerson's sole, Synaptura commersonnii (Lacépède, 1802).
  • Portuguese sole, Synaptura lusitanica lusitanica (Brito Capello, 1868).
  • Synaptura lusitanica nigromaculata (Pellegrin, 1905).
  • White-margined sole, Synaptura marginata (Boulenger, 1900).
  • Synaptura megalepidoura (Fowler, 1934).
  • Black sole, Synaptura nigra (Macleay, 1880).
  • Saltpan sole, Synaptura salinarum (Ogilby, 1910).
  • Selheim's sole, Synaptura selheimi (Macleay, 1882).
  • Velvety sole, Synaptura villosa (Weber, 1907).
• Genus Synapturichthys
  • Klein's sole, Synapturichthys kleinii (Risso, 1827).
• Genus Typhlachirus
  • Typhlachirus caecus (Hardenberg, 1931).
• Genus Vanstraelenia
  • African solenette, Vanstraelenia chirophthalma (Regan, 1915).
• Genus Zebrias
  • Zebrias altipinnis (Alcock, 1890).
  • Zebrias annandalei (Talwar & Chakrapany, 1967).
  • Convict zebra sole, Zebrias captivus (Randall, 1995).
  • Wicker work sole, Zebrias craticula (McCulloch, 1916).
  • Zebrias crossolepis (Zheng & Chang, 1965).
  • Zebrias fasciatus (Basilewsky, 1855).
  • Wavyband sole, Zebrias japonica (Bleeker, 1860).
  • Zebrias keralensis (Joglekar, 1976).
  • Zebrias lucapensis (Seigel & Adamson, 1985).
  • Zebrias maculosus (Oommen, 1977).
  • Zebrias munroi (Whitley, 1966).
  • Duskybanded sole, Zebrias penescalaris (Gomon, 1987).
  • Fringefin zebra sole, Zebrias quagga (Kaup, 1858).
  • South African zebra sole, Zebrias regani (Gilchrist, 1906).
  • Many-band sole, Zebrias scalaris (Gomon, 1987).
  • Indian zebra sole, Zebrias synapturoides (Jenkins, 1910).
  • Zebra sole, Zebrias zebra (Bloch, 1787).
  • Zebrias zebrinus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1846).

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Soleidae

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