Summer Flounder
Paralichthys dentatus
Photo: Arturodomiao · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
Keep or release?
Where are you fishing?
Size limits, seasons and female rules are set by each state. Pick yours to get a verdict.
TIDE covers New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland rules, plus federal protections everywhere.
Verifying against GBIF…
Conservation status
IUCN Red ListManaged jointly by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission; states set recreational size and bag limits every year.
What Least Concern means
Assessed as widespread and abundant. This describes the global population, not fishing pressure or legal protection.
On your plate
Common Seafood
One of the most popular fish on the Jersey Shore. Keep it only in season and above the minimum size.
Conservation status and seafood sustainability are two different questions. A species can be Least Concern globally and still be overfished, protected or unsustainable where you are.
Habitat
Sandy and muddy bottoms of bays, inlets and the coastal ocean
Range
Atlantic coast from Nova Scotia to Florida, most common from Cape Cod to Cape Hatteras
Size
Commonly 38–56 cm
Diet
Small fish, squid, shrimp and crabs, ambushed from the bottom
Group
fish
It starts life with an eye on each side of its head. One eye migrates, and the adult lies on its right side with both eyes on its left.
It can shift its colour and pattern to match the seabed.
Anglers call it fluke; it moves inshore in the warm months.
Cook this species