Bigmouth Sole, Hippoglossina stomata
Bigmouth Sole, Hippoglossina stomata. Fish provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, July 2013. Length: 22 cm (8.7 inches).
Bigmouth Sole, Hippoglossina stomata. Fish caught from coastal waters off San Diego, California, August 2010. Length: 20 cm (7.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
Bigmouth Sole, Hippoglossina stomata. Fish provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, August 2010. Length: 41 cm (16 inches).
The Bigmouth Sole, Hippoglossina stomata, is a member of the family Paralichthyidae or Sand Flounders, and is known in Mexico as lenguado bocón. Globally, there are five members of the genus Hippoglossina, of which three are found in Mexican waters, all in the Pacific Ocean.
The Bigmouth Sole has an elongated body with a depth that is 34% to 38% of standard length. Their eye side is gray brown with blue reflections and numerous blue and pale brown spots. There are five dark brown ocelli along their upper and lower body. They have light and dark mottlings on their anal and dorsal fins and a dark spot on both sides of their caudal fin base. Their blind side is off-white. They have a modest-sized head with a long mouth that is approximately 50% of head length and reaches the rear edge of their lower eye. Their large eyes are found on the left side set close together, and parallel. They have small teeth of equal size developed on both jaws. Their anal fin has 47 to 55 rays; their caudal fin is pointed; their dorsal fin has 63 to 70 rays and originates over the top eye; and their pectoral fin is short being 50% of head length on the eye side; and, their pelvic fins are symmetric. They have 15 to 21 long and slender gill rakers on their lower arch. They are covered with large rough scales. They have an arched lateral line that extends into the head and branches into the top eye and below the lower eye.
The Bigmouth Sole is a demersal species that is found over and within sandy and muddy bottoms at depths between 10 m (33 feet) and 480 m (1,570 feet). They reach a maximum of 40 cm (16 inches) in length. They are optimistic and well-camouflaged ambush predators that lie in wait half submerged on the ocean floor. They prey on small fish and a wide variety of crustaceans. They are preyed upon by the California Sea Lion. The Bigmouth Sole is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Bigmouth Sole is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution being found along the entire west coast of Baja and throughout the Sea of Cortez; they are are absent from coastal waters from Mazatlán, Sinaloa, southward to Guatemala.
The Bigmouth Sole cannot be confused with any other species due to its elongated body, large mouth, highly arched lateral line, and spotted ocelli, although the Spotted Flounder, Hippoglossina bollmani (maximum length 20 cm; 11-13 gill rakers).
From a conservation perspective the Bigmouth Sole is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable widely distributed populations. They are considered to be an excellent food fish and are sold commercially. They are a rare by-catch of deep water shrimp trawlers and are occasionally caught by pier fishermen or on party boats.