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

Reinhardtius hippolossoides (Walbaum, 1792)
Greenland Halibut
Family: Pleuronectidae

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Species Information

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 83 - 108; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 62 - 79; Vertebrae: 60 - 64. Dorsal origin behind posterior edge of upper eye. Caudal slightly forked to truncate. Pectorals small.

Source: FishBase. Nielsen, J.G. 1986 . (Ref. 4705)

Biology

Species Biology

Often caught pelagically (Ref. 4705). Adults prefer bottom temperatures of -0.5°C to 6.0°C (Ref. 5951). Epibenthic (Ref. 58426). Feed on crustaceans, fishes (Ref. 4705, 6885), eelpouts, capelin, redfishes, deep sea prawns and other bottom invertebrates (Ref. 35388). Batch spawner (Ref. 51846). Environment: benthopelagic; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); marine; depth range 1 - 2000 m (Ref. 6793), usually 500 - 1000 m (Ref. 6263). Climate: boreal; -1 – 4°C (Ref. 43586); 79°N - 33°N, 180°W - 180°E

Source: FishBase. Nielsen, J.G. 1986 . (Ref. 4705)

Distribution

Circumglobal: In arctic and temperate waters; northern hemisphere. Sea of Japan off Honshu north to Shishmaref, Alaska in the Chukchi

Source: FishBase. Nielsen, J.G. 1986 . (Ref. 4705)

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Unlisted	Unlisted	Unlisted	Unlisted

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: 2026-02-13 7:37:57 PM]

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