The winter flounder, Pseudopleuronectes americanus, (also known as black back) is a right-eyed ("dextral") flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is native to coastal waters of the western north Atlantic coast, from Labrador, Canada to Georgia, United States. In the waters from Newfoundland down through Massachusetts Bay it is the most common near-shore (shallow-water) flounder. It grows up to 64 cm in length and 3.6 kg in weight.
It spends the summer off shore in deeper waters, and winters in shallow coastal estuaries rivers and bays.
Winter flounders are highly regarded for their delicious white meat. They are sometimes called lemon sole in the U.S.
They can be differentiated from summer flounder because they almost always have eyes on the right side of their bodies. They also do not have teeth. Summer flounder have their eyes on the left side of their bodies, and do have teeth.
Famous quotes containing the word winter:
“all ignorance toboggans into know
and trudges up to ignorance again:
but winter’s not forever, even snow
melts; and if spring should spoil the game, what then?
all history’s a winter sport or three:”
—E.E. (Edward Estlin)