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| fishes text index | photo index |
| Phylum Chordata > Subphylum Vertebrate > fishes > Order Pleuronectiformes |
| Tongue-soles Family Cynoglossidae updated Feb 11
Where seen? These tiny flatfishes are often seen on Changi, among seagrasses, buried in sand or hovering over the surface. What are tongue-soles? Tongue-soles are flatfishes belonging to the Family Cynoglossidae. According to FishBase: the family has 3 genera and 110 species. They are found in all warm oceans, most species in shallow waters or near river mouths. One group (Symphurinae) are found in very deep waters 1,000m or more. In Greek, 'kyon' means 'dog' and 'glossa' means 'tongue'. Features: To about 18cm, those seen about 3-6cm. Eyes on the left side, usually very small and close together. Body flat and oval, tapering at the tail, like an elongated tear-drop shape. The tail fin is joined and merges seamlessly with the dorsal and anal fins. There are no spines in all the fins. The dorsal fin starts at or infront of the eyes. It lacks pectoral fins. The teeth are tiny and usually only on the blind side. The eyed side usually has an even pattern of pale spots and matches the colour of its surroundings. Patterns may vary even within the same species. Species are difficult to positively identify in the field or from photographs without closer examination of small features on the body. Sometimes confused with other flatfishes. Here's more on how to tell apart the flatfish families commonly seen. Tiny, flat and fast, they are also sometimes mistaken for flatworms. Human uses: Many tongue-sole species are commercially important as food. Elsewhere, some species can reach 40cm long. Status and threats: Our tongue-soles are not listed among the threatened animals of Singapore. However, like other creatures of the intertidal zone, they are affected by human activities such as reclamation and pollution. Over-harvesting can also affect local populations. |
 Changi, May 05  Tail fin joined to the dorsal and anal fins  |
Small and flat, they are often mistaken for flatworms!Tongue-soles on Singapore shores
 Changi, Jun 05 |
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 Changi East, Oct 11 |
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 Sentosa, Jun 07 |
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 Lazarus Island, Feb 11 |
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 East Coast, Dec 08
Photo shared by Loh Kok Sheng on his
blog.
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more photos of tongue-soles on Singapore shores
| Family
Cynoglossidae recorded for Singapore from Wee Y.C. and Peter K. L. Ng. 1994. A First Look at Biodiversity in Singapore. *Lim, Kelvin K. P. & Jeffrey K. Y. Low, 1998. A Guide to the Common Marine Fishes of Singapore.
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