Fun Banded Sole Facts For Kids

Banded sole (Soleichthys heterorhinos) is a remarkable sole fish with a bluish-white striped body that belongs to the Soleidae family. They are marine animals and are found at great depths on the ocean or seafloor. Their other names are sole fish, flatfish, and blue-edged fish. These soles are found in large numbers in the Eastern Indian Ocean and Western Pacific Ocean. They camouflage themselves on the sea floors burying their body entirely into the sand with only their eyes and nostrils sticking out. They prey on small crustaceans like crabs and prawns.

They lay eggs in clusters that are buoyant, and the larvae float on the water surface while developing. As they begin to grow in size, the soles gradually settle down on the seafloor. Their body weight is about 3.5-4.4 lb (1.6-2.0 kg), and their length is about 7.0 in (18 cm). This exquisite body shape and patterns are picked up by a certain kind of octopus, the mimic octopus, that mimics the banded sole. To know more about this intriguing species, read on.

If you liked reading this article, then do check out lemon sole facts and sole fish facts.

What type of animal is a banded sole?

The banded sole is a type of sole fish or flatfish that belongs to the Soleidae family.

What class of animal does a banded sole belong to?

The banded sole fish belongs to the Actinopterygii class, like many other marine species.

How many banded soles are there in the world?

There are a total of 89 species of flatfish or soles that are known in the world. However, the exact number of banded soles is unknown.

Where does a banded sole live?

This endemic banded sole inhabits large areas of the Eastern Indian Ocean and Western Pacific.

What is a banded sole's habitat?

The banded sole is found on seafloor and ocean floor regions and on or near rocky reefs.

Who do banded soles live with?

The banded sole is a solitary creature and lies on the seafloor to capture its prey.

How long does a banded sole live?

The average lifespan of a sole fish varies between 25-40 years.

How do they reproduce?

The banded sole (Soleichthys heterorhinos) reproduces by laying large clusters of eggs that are buoyant and their larvae, after hatching out, float on the water surface of the Pacific and Indian oceans. Both the males and females are pelagic spawners, and their breeding season ranges from the months of February to May. The sole fish prefers slightly saline water of the coastal regions for spawning with a temperature range of 42.8-53.6℉ (6-12 ℃). Their incubation period lasts for about five days. The species of banded sole undergo metamorphosis in their life cycle. They exhibit four distinct stages- the egg, larva, juvenile stage, and the adult sole. The juvenile sole inhabits bays and coastal nurseries and gradually floats down to the seafloor as it develops.

What is their conservation status?

The International Union for Conservation of Nature or IUCN Red List has listed the banded sole (Soleichthys heterorhinos) as a species of Least Concern. However, increased levels of water pollution and acidic water may impose a threat to this species and other marine forms.

What does a banded sole look like?

The banded sole has an elongated flat body with striped blue and white colorations. It has two circular bead-like eyes that are located side by side. These eyes have very little interorbital space. They can rotate their eyes for about 180 degrees like a periscope to look around. The sole or flatfish has an average of 80-100 dorsal fin, 80-90 caudal fin, and seven to nine branched pectoral fins that are arranged side by side. The flatfish has four pelvic fins and about 100-120 lateral line scales with 50 vertebrae. They lay still in the shallow watery region to catch their prey. Once they get to know about imminent danger, they swim rapidly in order to escape. They bury themselves in sand beds or in the coastal reefs, with only their eyes and nostrils projecting outwards.

How cute are they?

These species are not considered to be cute due to their scaly elongated flat body.

How do they communicate?

The exact form of communication of the banded sole is unknown, but they are able to detect predators using electrical signals and camouflage themselves to deflect the predators.

How big is a banded sole?

The banded sole is 7.0 in (18 cm) in length and way smaller than the common sole fish, which is about 28 in (71.12 cm) in length.

How fast can a banded sole swim?

The banded sole can swim very fast and can quickly disappear in the blink of an eye. They can camouflage themselves and not get detected by predators. It becomes difficult to spot them once they settle down. The exact speed of the species is not known. They are also known to catch their prey quickly.

How much does a banded sole weigh?

The sole fish weighs about 3.5-4.4 lb (1.6-2.0 kg).

What are the male and female names of the species?

There are no specific names given to the male and female fish of the species.

What would you call a baby-banded sole?

The baby sole fish is not given any specific names. However, once the eggs hatch, they are called larvae.

What do they eat?

The sole fish species eat small crustaceans like prawns, crabs, and shrimp.

Are they dangerous?

This striped flatfish is not considered to be dangerous and does not impose any threat to humans. The scales along the dorsal line of their body contain a poisonous neurotoxin that helps them to get away from their predators.

Would they make a good pet?

The sole fish or flatfish is acclimatized to living in deep-sea environments and hence, are not considered as good pets.

Did you know...

This flatfish species shows bioluminescence and emits blue and red colors under certain light.

The flatfish or sole fish has the amazing capability of pulling its entire body into a hole, only leaving its eyes and nostrils outside. They do this to bury themselves deep into the sand so that they can escape from their predators. This is an extremely effective move, and thus, this move has been picked up by the mimic octopus that copies, or mimics, the banded sole in order to capture prey and evade predators. Other species of Soleichthyes, like the tiger sole, swims with an undulating motion and eventually takes the shape of flatworms.

How many eyes does a sole fish have? 

The flatfish has two round beady eyes that are located side by side. These eyes can rotate about 180 degrees which helps the soles to watch around for prey and predators. The eyes glide side by side and have very little interorbital space.

How many eggs do banded soles lay?

The exact number of eggs that the flatfish lay is not known. However, they lay clusters of eggs together that are buoyant. The larvae tend to float in shallow water, while the adults live in deeper water.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other Fish from our emperor angelfish fun facts and black grouper interesting facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable intricate fish coloring pages.