FOR AGES 3 YEARS TO 18 YEARS
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Sole fish, also known as Dover fish, is a kind of valuable food flatfish in Europe. Solea solea is the sole fish's scientific name. The distribution of sole fish range from the Eastern Atlantic to the Mediterranean Sea. Although, it migrates to other regions with warm water in the winter. Their habitat includes brackish seawater with muddy or sandy ground. Another name of this fish includes a black sole and a Dover sole. The Dover name of the fish comes from a Dover place in the UK, where they were abundantly present in the previous time. In the United Kingdom, the fish is generally known as a 'slip' in the fish market. They are a kind of flatfish.
This fish species is also known as flatfish due to its flat body features. There are nearly 180 species of Sole fish and mostly belong to the Soleidae family. The description of Solea solea includes a flat body, two eyes on one side of the body, a mouth, dorsal and anal fins. They have one eye on each side of the body and have acquired brown-gray with darker patches on the entire body and a black spot on each pectoral fin. The solenette (Buglossidium luteum) fish are similar to Dover fish, but the former is much smaller (up to 13 cm) than the latter. As a diurnal fish species, the Dover fish feed on several small creatures during the day.
If you enjoyed learning about this fish species, you might also want to check out neon tetra facts and round goby facts.
The common sole, also known as Dover sole or black sole, is a flatfish that is famous in Europe.
The Dover sole (Solea solea) is a fish species that belongs to the class Actinopterygii of phylum Chordata. This marine fish is one of the members of the flatfish family.
The population size of Dover sole fish has not been estimated yet.
The distribution range of common sole or black sole fish ranges from the Eastern Atlantic ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, including the northwest coast of Africa, Sea of Marmara, Sea of Bosporus, Norway, and Senegal, including Cape Verde. Its distribution extends to some parts of the southwestern Black Sea. However, in winter, the fish migrates to warmer waters of the North Sea. The black sole fish is most common around the coasts of the British Islands, the north coastline of Germany, and the seashore of France. It is quite popular in Europe.
The sole fish habitat includes marine shallow-water regions with sandy and muddy surfaces. It prefers a temperature range between 46-75 F (8-24 C). It is an oceanodromous fish that is often found in the demersal zone.
The common sole fish are solitary creatures. They live alone their whole life.
The Dover sole is a long-lived flatfish species. Its lifespan ranges between 24 and 40 years, which is not common in marine life.
The common sole (Solea solea) fish reach adulthood at the age of three to five years. They begin to reproduce at this age when the height reaches from 25-30 cm in length. The lifecycle of this species goes through four different stages: egg, larva, juvenile, and adult. Both eggs and larvae of this species are pelagic. The spawning season ranges from February to May in areas like the coasts of Galicia. Still, in some regions, such as the Mediterranean Sea with warmer waters, it can happen at the starting of winter. In the North sea, the spawning period is from April to June. One of the most important spawning grounds for Solea solea is the Wadden Sea. This fish species prefers to spawn in brackish coastal water with temperatures between 18-37.5 F (6-12 C). After the fertilization of eggs, the hatching occurs after the incubation period of around five days at 12 C. In the beginning, the larvae appear the same as the sound fish. Still, as they grow, they undergo amazing development. The common larvae take nearly 35 days with a temperature of 18 C to metamorphose into juvenile sole fish. During two to three years, Juvenile sole fishes are usually found in the coastal nurseries (bays and nurseries). After that, they migrate to deeper waters. The eggs and sole larvae make the diet of a broad range of inshore marine creatures. The sole fish life years range from 24 and 40 years in the wild.
The conservation status of the Dover sole species is Data Deficient because the information regarding this fish species is insufficient to produce any result. However, Solea solea fish are long mature fish with a life that lasts for a long period. This quality is what makes fish vulnerable to fishing pressures. It is a popular water animal in Europe, and overfishing in this continent has produced seriously reduced populations, with dropping catches in numerous areas. For instance, according to the United Kingdom Biodiversity Action Plan, the western British coast and Irish Sea sole fisheries face latent blackout due to extreme sole fishing. With other marine animals, such as monkfish, cod, and plaice, this fish is listed as 'outside safe biological limits' on the list of ICES. In 2003, the sole and flounder (groundfish) was estimated to be only around 10 % of pre-industrial levels. In 2006, the World Wildlife Fund stated that seven out of nine sole stocks were overexploited, with the position of the remaining two unclear. Greenpeace International added the Dover sole to its red list of seafood in 2010. This red list is a list of marine food items broadly sold in supermarkets around the world.
The members of the sole species (Solea solea) have two small eyes on one side of the body. With this lurking half-buried body description, the fish fool the predators by behaving like a dead organism. Like all other flatfishes, the common sole is born with one eye on each side of the body. When the larvae metamorphized into a juvenile, one eye shifts to the other side. The distinct characteristics of this fish include an oval body and asymmetric eyes, generally located on the right side. The top eye is situated under its diameter from the upper side of the head. The upper body of the sole fish is gray-brown, and the ventral side is white. They can reach a maximum length of 28 in (71.12 cm). The dorsal spines and anal spines are absent, but they have 69-97 dorsal soft rays, 53-80 Anal spines, and 46-52 vertebrae. Dorsal and Anal fins run on the entire length of the body of this fish. This fish also possess an arched mouth, preopercle, scaled opercula, distinct caudal peduncle, the pectoral fin on the right side with dark spots, and dorsal fin on the horizontal axis. All over the body, there are rectangular ctenoid scales.
The Dover sole fish do not look cute at all as they possess a poisonous look, even though they are not poisonous.
No information is available regarding the communication in the sole species.
The common sole (Solea solea) length is 28 in (71.12 cm), which is 20 times bigger than sargo fish.
The swimming speed of this fish is unknown.
The weight of this fish is over 6.6 lb (3 kg). They are about six times lighter than the blobfish.
There are no specific names available for the male and female of this fish.
The baby common sole (Solea solea) is normally known as a young or offspring.
As a carnivore species, the Solea solea feed on worms, mollusks, small fishes, and crustaceans.
No, the common sole (Solea solea) are non-poisonous marine creatures.
Solea solea fish are not beautiful animals; therefore, people do not keep them as pets.
Hemibdella soleae is an ectoparasite of the common sole.
They are known as sole fish because they have a flat undersurface.
There are mainly three types of sole fish, true sole (finless and yellow sole), American sole (ray-finned fishes), and tongue sole (Bengal tongue and carrot tongue sole).
It is one of the most sought-after fish delicacies around the world, especially in Europe. People love its mild, buttery, sweet flavor and are considered a good fish to savor. They are also considered to be a healthy source of food. Along with the common sole, the lemon sole is also popular seafood.
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 clown rasbora facts or pigfish facts pages.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our Common Sole coloring pages.
Read The Disclaimer
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising.
We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the buy now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Please note: prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published.
Kidadl has a number of affiliate partners that we work with including Amazon. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.
We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
Was this article helpful?
We’ll send you tons of inspiration to help you find a hidden gem in your local area or plan a big day out.
Check your inbox for your latest news from us. You have subscribed to:
Remember that you can always manage your preferences or unsubscribe through the link at the foot of each newsletter.