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Hippoglossus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hippoglossus
Atlantic halibut (H. hippoglossus)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Carangiformes
Family: Pleuronectidae
Subfamily: Hippoglossinae
Genus: Hippoglossus
G. Cuvier, 1816
Type species
Pleuronectes hippoglossus
Linnaeus, 1758

Hippoglossus is a genus of very large righteye flounders. It comprises two species of halibut, with one species native to the northern Atlantic Ocean and the other species native to the northern Pacific Ocean.[1]

Etymology

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The word hippoglossus is derived from the Greek ἵππος (hippos), meaning "horse", and γλῶσσα (glōssa), meaning "tongue" - a reference to the shape of the fish.

Species

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There are two species in this genus:[1]

Image Scientific name Distribution
Hippoglossus hippoglossus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Atlantic halibut) northern Atlantic, from Labrador and Greenland to Iceland, the Barents Sea and as far south as the Bay of Biscay and Virginia
Hippoglossus stenolepis P. J. Schmidt, 1904 (Pacific halibut) Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea, off the west coast of Canada, coastal Washington, Oregon, and California

References

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  1. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Hippoglossus". FishBase. May 2017 version.