Ammotretis rostratus

Righteye flounder

Ammotretis rostratus, Bruny Island, TAS, Photo: Graham Edgar

Ammotretis rostratus, adult, St Leonards, VIC, Photo: Andrew Green

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Distribution

Temperate Australasia

Description

Rounded body with finely spotted upper surface that varies in colour from beige to brown to grey. The snout is short and hook-like. The species is common in sheltered Victoria and Tasmanian bays and estuaries, where the smallest juveniles live near the water’s edge and move in and out with the tide. The very similar Ammotretis lituratus (no photo yet) has smaller maximum length (23cm vs 35cm); its spots are orangy-reddish, and it is mainly coastal, rarely entering estuaries.

Information

Max Size: 30 cm

Sea Temperature Range: 12.1-20.1°C

Depth: 0-80m

Habitat Generalization Index: N/A

Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.

Conservation and Rarity

IUCN Status: Not Evaluated

Occurrence: Widespread (100% of sites)

Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed

Abundance: Solitary (1 per transect)

Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.

Edit by: Andrew Green