Atlantic halibut Atlantic halibut The Atlantic halibut ("Hippoglossus hippoglossus") is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. They are demersal fish living on or near sand, gravel or clay bottoms at depths of between . The halibut is among the largest teleost (bony) fish in the world, and is an endangered species due to a slow rate of growth and previous overfishing. Halibut are strong swimmers and are able to migrate long distances. Halibut size is not age-specific, but rather tends to follow a cycle related to halibut (and therefore food) abundance. The native habitat of the Atlantic halibut is the temperate and
Demersal fish benthic fish are denser, with negative buoyancy so they can lie on the bottom without any effort. Most demersal fish are benthopelagic. As with other bottom feeders, a mechanism to deal with substrate is often necessary. With demersal fish the sand is usually pumped out of the mouth through the gill slit. Most demersal fish exhibit a flat ventral region so as to more easily rest their body on the substrate. The exception may be the flatfish, which are laterally depressed but lie on their sides. Also, many exhibit what is termed an "inferior" mouth, which means that the mouth