Gulf flounder - flounder world

• Brown body color, with numerous spots and blotches
• Three prominent dark, eyelike spots forming a triangle-shape (one spot on lateral line, one above and one below)
• Numerous white spots scattered throughout body and fins
• Belly is white or dusky
• Strong canine-like teeth
• Wedge-shaped tail, its tip in the middle

The Gulf flounder is a flatfish that swims on its side. Their two eyes look upward when swimming. They have sharp teeth, two eyes on one side, and have a white side. Paralichthys albigutta is widely distributed in the western North Atlantic. Adults are found in a variety of habitats, but generally prefer hard, sandy bottoms; juveniles settle in high salinity seagrass beds. Longevity is 7–10 years and females reach maturity between 1–2 years. It is commercially and recreationally exploited. The center of abundance of Paralichthys albigutta in the Gulf of Mexico is along the northeastern coast of Florida. West of the Mississippi River delta, it occurs in very low numbers.It appears to naturally occur in low abundance in seagrass beds. It is common in museum collections (660 lots). Many species of fishes, including P. albigutta, have experienced declines in abundance in the Northern Gulf of Mexico from 1970-2000; although Fodrie et al. (2010),(This needs to be challenged, as in coastal Western Louisiana, the flounder have not been as plentiful in 50 years, as of 2018), attributed this at least in part to the effects of global rises in sea temperature, there are also a number of other factors (e.g., bycatch in trawl fisheries, increased recreational landings: T. Munroe pers. comm. 2015) that may contribute to these declines. Gill netting has been implicated in the decline of flounder stocks in North Carolina due to targeting of non-reproductive juveniles; however, the population-level effects of this method of harvest on P. albigutta are unknown 

Flounder inhabit a wide variety of coastal habitats including brackish water rivers, tidal creeks, bays, estuaries, beaches, muddy or sandy bottoms and near-shore rocky bottoms. Anglers generally use light spinning tackle and often target flounder close to shoreline structure including stumps, dock piles, seawalls and bridge piles, which are good points of ambush. While flounder can be caught with a wide variety of natural or artificial baits, most anglers prefer to use live mud minnows, live finger mullet, live or frozen shrimp, cut bait or jigs. Flounder are ambush predators that feed primarily by sight - so it is often helpful to periodically bump the bait across the bottom to make it more visible. Flounder can also be taken with a gig in shallow waters, especially at night with the use of a lantern.

   Scientific classification  

Kingdom:        Animalia

Phylum:     Chordata

Class:      Actinopterygii

Order:    Pleuronectiformes

Family:   Paralichthyidae

Genus:  Paralichthys

Gulf flounder appear to prefer the ocean floor and camouflage against areas to stealthily strike their prey. This demersal species occurs in shallow depths within estuaries and coastal environments; it is most commonly found on the continental shelf at depths of 18–92 m, but has been collected to about 130 m.

VIDEO

Top 5 video flounder fishing | How to catch flounder

Catching flounder isn’t difficult.  A light or medium action saltwater rod with spinning or conventional reel will do.  Twenty pound line is more than adequate.  To rig for them, use a 1 to 4 ounce sinker at the end of your line and rig one hook with a 15 or so inch leader about 6” above the sinker.  A second hook with a shorter leader can be placed higher on your line.  Rig them so they don’t get tangled.  On these hooks you can try minnies (Fundulus minnows – also called killies) hooked through the lips so they remain alive.  You may try squid strips or a combination of a minnie plus a strip of squid.  You may also try jigging with a spinning rod with a white, chartreuse, or pink lead-head jig with bucktail or rubber tail attached.  Adding a strip of squid can help. 

video It's good to see a fisherman keep fish. Fish good!


The best way to present your offering to flounder is to drift along with the tide and current. You should feel your sinker bumping along, thereby keeping your bait close to the bottom where the flounder are waiting. When you feel If you are fishing from shore, you may leave your bait in place after casting or, better yet, move your bait across the bottom to cover as large an area as possible. Once you feel a fish bite, a series of rapid tugs on your line, drop your rod tip a foot or so before firmly (don’t yank) setting the hook. Then the fun begins.


video Fluke and Flounder and different fish. One has the eyes on the left side of the face and one has them on the right side.


video Flounder Fishing Seawolf Park 2018
Graeme Pullen heads up North to to film an epic beach fishing session for Flounder! 

Recipe : Flounder Mediterranean!

5 roma (plum) tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pinch Italian seasoning
24 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup capers
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
6 leaves fresh basil, chopped
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound flounder fillets
6 leaves fresh basil, torn

Flounder Mediterranean video

Preheat oven to 220 degrees.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Plunge tomatoes into the boiling water and immediately remove to a medium bowl of ice water; drain. Remove and discard skins from tomatoes. Chop tomatoes and set aside.
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; saute onion until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, garlic and Italian seasoning; cook until tomatoes are tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Mix in olives, wine, capers, lemon juice, and 1/2 the basil. Reduce heat, blend in Parmesan cheese, and cook until the mixture is reduced to a thick sauce, about 15 minutes.
Place flounder in a shallow baking dish. Pour sauce over the fillets and top with remaining basil leaves.
Bake 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until fish is easily flaked with a fork.

Flounder gigging - 5 video

Flounder gigging can be done by wading stealthily in shallow water, but it is usually done from a flounder boat. A flounder boat is specifically designed for gigging flounder. It typically has a flat, wide bottom to provide a stable platform and the ability to negotiate shallow waters. Flounder vessels are navigated with a push-pole along the banks and flats where flounder may be lying. A battery powers light arrays for viewing the flat fish.
This method is effective in shallow, clear water where fish are easily observable from the top. The temporarily blind fish are speared with the gig, or sometimes can be collected by hand. During fishing events, an experienced person holds a lamp in the hand and points out fish for other people to collect.

Flounder Run is the best time for gigging.



I always say if it's a legal take then good going. We have a lot of people fuss about keeping sails from the pier, but for a shorebound angler it may be the one and only time they will ever catch one. Of course gigging can never come close to feeling that thunk-thunk-deadweight that you feel when a certified throw rug just ate your grub!



first time flounder gigging:



Great video, flounder is good to eat! Caught from an off-shore boat, but never have tried gigging!



Nice boat and awesome video!

Good recipes Flounder Nuggets!

Recipes Flounder Nuggets!

Mix about 2 Cups flour, 2 TBS of Cajun, 2 TBS of LPS, and around 1/2C of BreadCrumbs.

In seperate bowl add 4 Eggs and a tad bit of milk... Just enough to make it have a uniform color. Put cut up fish into the Egg. Pull out a pice of egged fish and put it in batter.... Repete until you have enough fish that you can cook the most w/out your deep fryer losing heat.

I do'nt know the right ammount of time, as i have never timed it, seems about 1 or 2 min, usually when the fish floats its done.

Drain oil and put the fish on a papertowl.

Eat and enjoy!!!!!

Best 5 flounder recipes

RECIPES Asian Flounder

Ingredients
8 green onions
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil, divided
4 (6-ounce) flounder fillets, skinned
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 lemon slices


Remove green tops from onions; slice onion tops into 1-inch pieces to measure 1/4 cup; set aside. Reserve remaining onion tops for another use. Cut white portions of onions into 2-inch pieces.

Combine cilantro, ginger, and 1 teaspoon oil in a 9-inch pie plate. Fold each fillet in half crosswise. Arrange fish spokelike with thinnest portions pointing toward center of dish. Arrange white onion portions between each fillet. Combine 1/4 cup green onion tops, 1 teaspoon oil, vinegar, soy sauce, and salt; pour over fish. Cover with heavy-duty plastic wrap. Microwave at HIGH 4 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Garnish each fillet with a lemon slice.

RECIPES - Crispy Flounder and Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients
2 tablespoons capers
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
4 (6-ounce) skinless flounder fillets Cooking spray
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine first 3 ingredients in a large ovenproof skillet; toss to coat. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes. Remove from oven; top with basil.

Combine panko, parsley, and thyme in a shallow dish. Coat fillets with cooking spray; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Dredge fillets in panko mixture. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 fillets to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Repeat procedure with remaining oil and fillets.

RECIPES : Lemon-Garlic Broiled Flounder with Spinach

Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced Salt and pepper
1 small onion, chopped
2 10-oz. packages frozen spinach
4 flounder fillets (about 6 oz. each) Zest of
1/2 lemon, optional

Preheat broiler to high, line a broiling pan with foil and set rack 2 inches from heat. In a small bowl, combine 3 Tbsp. olive oil, lemon juice and garlic; season with salt and pepper.

Warm remaining oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onion until softened, 3 minutes. Add frozen spinach, cover and cook until thawed, about 8 minutes. Uncover, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with 1/2 of flavored olive oil. Cook for 4 minutes to simmer off excess liquid. Remove from heat, cover and keep warm.

Lightly mist foil-lined broiling pan with cooking spray. Arrange flounder fillets on top and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle remaining flavored oil over fish and broil, undisturbed, until opaque and lightly browned, about 6 minutes.

Divide spinach among 4 plates. Place fish on spinach bed and serve hot, topped with lemon zest, if desired.

RECIPES Crunchy Baked Flounder

Ingredients
1/2 cup panko
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
4 flounder fillets (1 1/2 lb.)
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425°F. Mist bottom of a large baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Combine panko, Parmesan and butter in a small bowl and stir mixture well.

Sprinkle both sides of flounder generously with salt and pepper. Arrange fish in prepared baking dish. Sprinkle panko-Parmesan mixture over fish. Bake until fish is cooked through and crumbs are golden, about 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

RECIPES Baked Flounder with Herb-Caper Butter

Ingredients
4 6-oz. flounder fillets Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon drained and rinsed capers

Preheat oven to 450ºF. Lightly mist with cooking spray a baking dish just large enough to hold fish fillets in a single layer. Place fillets in baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Whisk olive oil, lemon juice and garlic in a small bowl and drizzle over fish. Bake until fish is cooked through and no longer translucent, 7 to 10 minutes.

While fish is cooking, melt butter in a small pan until foamy. Stir in tarragon and capers. With a spatula, transfer cooked fish to plates and spoon butter sauce on top. Serve immediately.

The best top 20 flounder fish images

Check out these amazing flounder pics from flounder-world: 

Gulf flounder

Southern flounder

Winter flounder – Pseudopleuronectes americanus

European flounder – Platichthys flesus

Halibut – Hippoglossus stenolepis

Olive flounder – Paralichthys olivaceus

Find the perfect Flounder stock photos and best 20 pictures from flounder-world. Two fried breaded flounder fish pieces on wooden table

Flounder pounder - top video collection.

The FLOUNDER POUNDER trip has STARTED!

Outdoors Delmarva checks out a flounder tournament in Long Neck Delaware that has some big prizes up for grabs.

Look Flounder Pounder Shotgun start



video - Flounder Pounder 2017



Flounder Pounder Fishing Tournament | LIVE 2018!

Flounder pounder - one day fishing tournament

The Flounder Pounder is a one day fishing tournament for flounder. This tournament is a lot of fun and great for the kids. You may fish from your own boat or rent a skiff, skimmer, or pontoon from the marina if you wish. The tournament provides anglers with a unique fishing experience and excellent payout.

The Flounder Pounder Open will now be five days long and you can fish three of those five days!  Also there are now ten spots to place on the leader board and daily Calcutta pay outs!  Anglers have a shot to win money daily if they enter the Calcutta,and five more chances at the leaderboard.  This truly is the largest flounder tournament in the world with payouts at over two hundred thousand dollars!  good luck and save the dates!

Last weekend the Flounder Pounder Tournament was held out of Paradise Grill in Long Neck with a $100,000 first-place prize. All you had to do was catch the largest flounder among the more than 300 boats fishing two of the three days.

This is the annual Flounder Pounder, an event focused on the celebrated flatfish. With a grand prize of $50,000, a second prize of $25,000 and a third place of $10,000, anglers are offered the chance in to reel in some serious cash along with their catch.

Winter flounder

The name 'winter' flounder refers to their annual spawning migrations into nearshore waters in winter. Adults migrate in two phases; an autumn estuarine immigration prior to spawning, and a late spring/summer movement to either deeper, cooler portions of estuaries or to offshore areas after spawning. This pattern of seasonal distribution may change in colder waters at the northern extent of their range where winter flounder migrate to shallow waters in the summer and deeper waters in the winter. The annual spawning period varies geographically and although spawning periods overlap considerably, peak spawning times are earlier in southern locations.

During spawning, females release demersal (negatively or neutrally buoyant) adhesive eggs whose properties facilitate retention within spawning grounds. Many factors influence larval and juvenile growth and survival, including temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and food availability. Nursery habitat for winter flounder larvae and juveniles is typically saltwater coves, coastal salt ponds, estuaries, and protected embayments; although larvae and juveniles have also been found in open ocean areas such as Georges Bank and Nantucket shoals. Larvae are predominantly found in the upper reaches of estuaries in early spring, moving into the lower estuary later in the season.

Winter flounder lay up to 3.3 million demersal, adhesive eggs that are retained within their spawning grounds. Depending on temperature, larvae of approximately 3 mm in length hatch in two to three weeks. These larvae are planktonic at first, but transition to a bottom-oriented lifestyle over time. Around five to six weeks after hatching, the left eye of the larval flounder begins to migrate to the right side of the body. The “flounder-like” juveniles then settle onto the seafloor and move into saltwater coves, coastal salt ponds, estuaries, and protected bays, where they may grow up to 100 mm within the first year. Adult winter flounder may grow as large as 70 cm and reach ages of 15+ years. Growth varies across their distribution, with northern populations generally growing slower than those at the southern end of their range.

Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Pleuronectiformes
Family: Pleuronectidae
Genus: Pseudopleuronectes
Species: P. americanus

By 1963 it had been determined that Winter Flounder moved offshore when the water got above 15°C and returned to the shallows when the water cooled. Usually this would result in a winter/deeper/offshore and summer/shoaler/inshore pattern. However the inshore summer water temperature does not always reach beyond 15°C, in which case the Winter Flounder would remain inshore. The preferred temperature range was determined to be a very narrow 12-15°C, across several populations throughout the NW Atlantic.

This means a narrow depth range, accounting for the all-or-nothing nature of Winter Flounder catches, and confounding interpretation of catch rate (catch per unit effort, or CPUE) trends once the distributional range was known to the fishing industry. Thus CPUE declined drastically in the early years of the fishery, but by later years the fish locations could be predicted accurately enough to compensate for population decline. The narrow temperature preference was later (1988) disputed, it being argued that the offshore movement in summer was for the purpose of feeding. In the end both temperature and feeding appear relevant.

Flounder - video collection.

Video collection - flounder fish!

The flounder, back in its display tank, finally feeds after four days.

VIDEO -Revealing Flounder



Video -How to clean Flounder by Captain Vincent Russo



Video - Flounder is Master of Disguise


Watch this flounder swim, land and change colors to camouflage himself.  For some reason he turns purple while swimming but immediately changes color to blend in when he lands.


Video - Underwater footage of a flounder catching prey at night in Tampa Bay, Florida

Southern Flounder

Southern flounder are found in rivers and estuaries along the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina to northern Florida, and from Tampa Bay, Florida along the Gulf coast into southern Texas. Their distribution is discontinuous around the southern tip of Florida, leading some biologists to wonder if there are two genetically separate natural stocks. Southern flounder are found in a wide range of salinities; adults have been captured in a range of 0 to 36 ppt (parts per thousand) salinity, and it is not uncommon to catch them by hook and line far inland on coastal rivers.

The southern (or armless) flounders are a small family, Achiropsettidae, of flounders found in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic waters. There are four genera, each with one species.

The broad flounder, Paralichthys squamilentus, is similar but is rarely found in inshore waters. Adults prefer depths of 100-220 meters. Juveniles are found in shallower water, but seldom in estuaries or bays. As the name implies, the broad flounder's body is wider, with the body width being half the length or greater.

Another 15 species of lefteye flounders are found in the northern Gulf of Mexico, but they are unlikely to be confused with the southern, gulf, or broad flounder.

The southern flounder generally prefers sandy - muddy bottoms throughout most of the estuary, but it can occur in channel and bay mouths and also frequents areas around piers, pilings, and rock jetties. Migrations to offshore spawning grounds begin in late fall at the onset of cold weather, and spawning is completed during winter months. They will lay in the sand around any natural structure, or around any of the numerous artificial reefs and wrecks. Spear-fishermen take some huge flounder around these wrecks in the winter months. This species is the prefect predator, lying in total camouflage on the bottom until unsuspecting prey wander within reach and are capture with lightning quick movements. Foods of this species include shrimp and fishes

• Scientific Name: Paralichthys lethostigma
• Common Names: flounder, mud flounder, plie (Louisiana French)
• Order: Pleuronectiformes
• Family: Paralichthyidae
• Population trend: stable

The southern flounder and Gulf flounder and other flatfish are compressed laterally and spend most of their life lying on the bottom or swimming along the bottom on their side. They have prominent eyes and a large mouth with large, sharp, pointed teeth.

Southern flounder and Gulf flounder are known as left-eye flounders; the eyes of the adults are always on the fish's left side. The opposite is true for other species of flounders, halibut, and all the species of soles, whose eyes are on the right side.

The left or "up" side of the southern and Gulf flounders is light olive brown to dark brown or nearly black, with many blotches and spots of darker and lighter color. The eyeless "down" size side is white or dusky. Gulf flounders are distinguished by three large dark eye-like spots, arranged in a triangle with a pair of spots about midway on the length of the fish and a third closer to the tail. Southern flounders may also have scattered large spots but they are much more diffuse and gradually disappear as the fish grows older. The scales are small. As described below, flounders can modify their coloration and patterning to match the bottom.

Flounder lying in ambush and partially buried on a sandy bottom. Click for a larger version.
Southern flounders are larger and live longer than Gulf flounders. Female southern flounders typically grow to about 28", while typical female Gulf flounders reach only about 18". Males of both species are smaller, typically reaching only 10 to 14" in length. After their first year of life, males spend most of their lives offshore, seldom venturing into estuaries and bays. Thus, the majority of flounders caught by anglers in inshore waters are females.

Flounders have small body cavities and lack a swim bladder, making it easier for them to maintain their position on the bottom.

VIDEO - Southern Flounder

Flounder

Flounder, any of numerous species of flatfishes belonging to the families Achiropsettidae.Included among the approximately 100 species of the family Pleuronectidae are the European flounder (Platichthys flesus), a marine and freshwater food and sport fish of Europe that grows to a length of 50 cm (20 inches) and weight of 2.7 kg (6 pounds); the starry flounder (Platichthys stellatus), a North Pacific species that averages about 9 kg (20 pounds) in weight; and the winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus), an American Atlantic food fish, growing to about 60 cm (23 inches) in length. Flounders in that family typically have the eyes and colouring on the right side.

Flounders are a group of flatfish species. In the families Bothidae and Paralichthyidae, which together contain more than 240 species, the better-known flounders include the summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus), an American Atlantic food fish growing to about 90 cm (35 inches); the peacock flounder (Bothus lunatus), a tropical American Atlantic species attractively marked with many pale blue spots and rings; the brill (Scophthalmus rhombus), a relatively large commercial European species, reaching a length of 75 cm (29 inches); and the dusky flounder (Syacium papillosum), a tropical western Atlantic species. Flounders in those families typically have eyes and colouring on the left side.

In its life cycle, an adult flounder has two eyes on one side of its head, and at hatching one eye is on each side of its head. One eye migrates to the other side of the body through a metamorphosis as it grows from larval to juvenile stage. As an adult, a flounder changes its habits and camouflages itself by lying on the bottom of the ocean floor as protection against predators. As a result, the eyes are then on the side which faces up. The side to which the eyes migrate is dependent on the species type.

The flounder is a typical flatfish with flattened fins that wrap around the oval-shaped body. Its eyes are positioned on the right side of the head (if you imagine the fish swimming upright) but, identification can be quite difficult because

•  some have been found with eyes directed towards the left
•  flounders have been known to interbreed (hybridise) with plaice giving rise to coloured variations
•  there are also flounders which have undersides exactly the same colour as their backs (normally they have white undersides).

The tail of a flounder is quite square at its end and there are bony tubercles around both sides of the body, at the bases of both the elongated dorsal and anal fins.
Flounders are very widely distributed around the coast of Britain. It lives from the shoreline down to depths around 165 feet deep, favouring muddy bottoms but will also live over sandy bottoms.

Flounders are amazingly tolerant of variations in the salt content of water. They can be found living in the sea, they can be found living in estuaries where slat water meets fresh, and they can even be found (and caught) in the freshwater of rivers well away from the sea shore. Flounders can be caught anywhere with flat shallow beaches and scars favoured spots. Although they can be caught at any time, by far the most prolific period for flounder fishing is within the first 3 hours of an incoming tide.

As far as anglers are concerned the flounder is primarily a spring, summer and autumn species as it is at these times of the year when flounders live within casting range. In the depths of winter they migrate into the warmer and deeper water well away from the shoreline. Flounders are at their most abundant from mid spring through until late summer. The onset of warmer weather sees the flounder arrive en masse for a summer feeding frenzy.