FISHES OF CHESAPEAKE BAY 
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line scarcely arched anteriorly; scales rather small, strongly ctenoid on right side, extending on the 
fin rays, less strongly ctenoid to nearly smooth on left side; origin of dorsal over anterior part of 
upper eye; caudal fin round; origin of anal about an eye’s diameter behind base of pectorals; ventral 
fins small, inserted under base of pectorals, reaching to or somewhat beyond origin of anal; pectoral 
fins rather small, the one on right side slightly the longer, 1.45 to 2.6 in head. 
Color in life of a Chesapeake Bay specimen 12 inches long, eyed side, olive green, reddish brown 
spots of various sizes, irregularly placed, everywhere on head and body; lips pale pinkish; fins 
reddish brown with darker blotches, dorsal and anal pink along edges; underneath white; dorsal 
and anal grayish blue, anteriorly pink; pectoral pink. Considerable color variation exists in this 
flounder, depending largely upon the locality where it is caught and somewhat upon size. The 
ground color may vary from light to dark; the spots may be prominent, obscure, or almost absent. 
Underneath it sometimes has areas of dark coloration. Young of 18 to about 50 millimeters to 
2 inches) in length are paler than the adults and more distinctly spotted. Like the summer flounder, 
this species is able to bring about color changes adaptable to the bottom. 
Many specimens of this species, ranging from 18 to 280 millimeters to 11 inches) in length, 
were preserved. The principal characters distinguishing this fish are the colored right side, the 
Fig. 87 . — Pseudopleuronectes americanus. From a specimen 16H inches long 
nearly straight lateral line, the strongly ctenoid scales of the colored side, and the scaly fin rays. 
The young do not differ greatly from the adults except in color, as stated in the description. 
The food of the winter flounder consists of many kinds of animal life, mostly of small size, for its 
small mouth restricts the size of the prey that can be taken. Small crustaceans appear to supply 
the principal food. Worms, small mollusks, and small fish also enter into the food. The first food 
taken by the larvse is said to consist of diatoms. 
Spawning takes place along sandy shores during the winter and early spring, the season 
beginning somewhat earlier in the southern part of the range of the species than farther north. 
The eggs are heavier than sea water and sink to the bottom in clusters. They are from 0.74 to 0.85 
millimeter in diameter. The period of incubation occupies 15 to 18 days at a water temperature 
of 37° to 38° F. The newly hatched fish is about 3 to 3.5 millimeters in length. Metamorpho- 
sis — i. e., the twisting of the skull and the migration of the left eye to the right side, which be- 
comes the colored side — is said to be completed when the fish is only 8 to 9 millimeters in length. 
Many young were collected in Chesapeake Bay, as follows: April 24-26, Coan River, Lewisetta, 
length 18 to 28 millimeters (0.7 to 1.1 inches); Love Point, Oxford, and Crisfield, seined along beach 
and trawled in deep holes, May 11 to 16, length 24 to 44 millimeters (1 to 1.73 inches); mouth of 
Potomac River, June 11, 2 specimens 50 and 58 millimeters (2 to 2.3 inches) in length. 
Flounders trawled in Chesapeake Bay during December and January, at about one year of 
age, ranged from 4J4 to 7 inches in length, agreeing very well with the 4 to 6 inch fish recorded by 
Bigelow and Welsh (1925, p. 504) for southern New England during January and February. 
