Tongue Flatfish, Plagiopsetta glossa Franz 1910

Summary:

The Tongue Flatfish, Plagiopsetta glossa is the only species in its genus and has the following combination of unique characters. Dorsal fin originating in front of eyes and extending forward on snout to position of nasal organ; pectoral fin with 7-10 rays (rarely 7) on eye-side, fin absent from blind side; lateral line on eyed-side with a supra-temporal extension; a pale snout and a dark spot on the middle of the lower jaw. Tongue flatfish are widely distributed on sandy and muddy bottoms around Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong and off northern New South Wales, Australia.

Cite this page as:

Dianne J. Bray, Plagiopsetta glossa in Fishes of Australia, accessed 25 Jan 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/996

Tongue Flatfish, Plagiopsetta glossa Franz 1910

More Info

Depth	50–200 m
Max Length Australia	190
Distribution	Known in Australian waters from temperate waters off Tweed Heads to off Wooli (New South Wales) in depths of 50-200 metres on sandy and muddy bottoms. Elsewhere found in the Western Pacific regions of Japan, Taiwan and Korea.
Features	Meristic features: Dorsal fin 66-75; Anal fin 50-57; Pectoral fin 8-10 (rarely 7); Pelvic fin 5; Lateral line scales 55-67; Abdominal vertebrae 8-10; Caudal vertebrae 26-27.
Size	To 15 cm SL; 19 cm TL.
Colour	In preservative: body mottled brownish with a pale snout, a medial dark spot ont eh lower jaw, a distinctive dark band at tail base and lightly pigmented bands on the pectoral fin.
Feeding	Carnivore - feeds on small benthic fishes and invertebrates.
Biology	The sexes are separate and fertilsation is external. members of the family Samaridae have pelagic eggs and larvae. Sasaki & Uyeda (2002) described an 8.4 mm larva collected in Tosa Bay, southern Japan, as distinctive in having broad, semi-transparent pterygiophore zones on the dorsal and anal fins, a trailing gut, a flexible S-shaped pelvic bone, and a skin fold under the throat.
Fisheries	Of no interest to fisheries.
Conservation	Not evaluated.
Species Citation	Plagiopsetta glossa Franz 1910, Abhandlungen der math.-phys. Klasse der K. Bayer Akademie der Wissenschaften 4(1): 64, Pl. 8 (fig. 58) Type locality: Yagoshima, Japan, depth 150 metres.
Author	Dianne J. Bray

Tongue Flatfish, Plagiopsetta glossa Franz 1910

References

Cooper, J.A., K.J. Graham & F. Chapleau. 1994. New record of the tongue flatfish, Plagiopsetta glossa (Samaridae, Pleuronectiformes) from Australia. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 41(2): 215-218.

Fowler, H. 1934. Descriptions of new fishes obtained 1907 to 1910, chiefly in the Philippine Islands and adjacent seas. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 85 (for 1933): 233-367 (description of Samariscus fasciatus, a junior synonym of Plagiopsetta glossa)

Franz, V. 1910. Die japanischen Knochenfische der Sammlungen Haberer und Doflein. (Beiträge zur Naturgeschichte Ostasiens.). Abhandlungen der math.-phys. Klasse der K. Bayer Akademie der Wissenschaften 4 (Suppl.) (1): 1-135, Pls. 1-11.

Hensley, D.A. 2001. Pleuronectidae (pp. 3863–3877). In: Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the western Central Pacific. Vol. 6. Bony fishes part 4 (Labridae to Latimeriidae), estuarine crocodiles, sea turtles, sea snakes and marine mammals. FAO, Rome.

Hoese, D.F. & Bray, D.J. 2006. Family Samaridae (pp. 1838–1840). In: Beesley, P.L. & Wells, A. (eds). Zoological catalogue of Australia. Volume 35. Part 3. ABRS & CSIRO Publishing, Part 3.

Mihara, E. & K. Amaoka. 1995. Samariscus fasciatus Fowler, 1934, a junior synonym of Plagiopsetta glossa Franz, 1910 (Pleuronectiformes: Pleuronectidae). Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 42(2): 208-211.

Mihara, E. & K. Amaoka. 2004. Pleuronectiform fishes from New Caledonian waters. Five species of the samarid genera Plagiopsetta and Samaris (Samaridae). In: Marshall, B. & B. Richer de Forges. (eds). Tropical Deep-Sea Benthos, volume 23. Mémoires du Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle 191: 611-635.

Sakamoto, K. 1984. Interrelationships of the family Pleuronectidae (Pisces: Pleuronectiformes). Memoirs of the Faculty of Fisheries Hokkaido University 31(1-2): 95-215.

Sasaki, K. & S.-I. Uyeda. 2002. A pelagic larva of Plagiopsetta glossa (Pleuronectiformes, Samaridae), characterized by a trailing gut and S-shaped pelvic bone: description and phylogenetic considerations. Ichthyological Research 49(4): 389-391.