E-Fauna BC: Electronic Atlas of the Wildlife of British Columbia

Hippoglossus stenolepis Schmidt, 1904
Pacific Halibut
Family: Pleuronectidae

Source: Distribution of Hippoglossus stenolepis as compiled by Aquamaps

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Species Information

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 90 - 106; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 69 - 80; Vertebrae: 49 - 51. Dorsal origin above anterior part of pupil in upper eye, generally low, higher in middle. Caudal spread and slightly lunate. Pectorals small.

Source: FishBase. FishBase. Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H Hammann. 1983 . (Ref. 2850)

Biology

Species Biology

Found on various types of bottoms (Ref. 2850). Young are found near shore, moving out to deeper waters as they grow older (Ref. 6885). Older individuals typically move from deeper water along the edge of the continental shelf where they spend the winter, to shallow coastal water (27-274 m) for the summer (Ref. 28499). Feeds on fishes, crabs, clams, squids, and other invertebrates (Ref. 6885). Environment: demersal; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); marine; depth range 0 - 1200 m (Ref. 50550)Climate: temperate; 73°N - 42°N, 138°E - 123°W

Source: FishBase. FishBase. Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H Hammann. 1983 . (Ref. 2850)

Distribution

North Pacific: Hokkaido, Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk to the southern Chukchi Sea and Point Camalu, Baja California, Mexico.

Source: FishBase. FishBase. Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H Hammann. 1983 . (Ref. 2850)

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	SNR	No Status	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer--the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic and lineage information (NCBI Taxonomy Browser)

Additional Range and Status Information Links

NatureServe Explorer
University of Alaska Museum

Additional Photo Sources

Flickr Image Search
Google Image Search
Images from Calphoto

Related Databases

fishbase

General References

FishBase References
Google Scholar Search

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2021. E-Fauna BC: Electronic Atlas of the Fauna of British Columbia [efauna.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2025-03-16 9:35:55 PM]

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