Halibut Halibut Halibut is a common name principally applied to the two flatfish in the genus "Hippoglossus" from the family of right-eye flounders. Less commonly, and in some regions only, other species of flatfish are also referred to as being halibuts. The word is derived from "haly" (holy) and "butte" (flat fish), for its popularity on Catholic holy days. Halibut are demersal fish and are highly regarded as a food fish. The Pacific halibut is the world's largest flatfish. The IGFA record was apparently broken off the waters of Norway in July 2013 by a 515-pound 8.6 foot fish. This was
Fish anatomy and various processes which project from the centrum or arches. An arch extending from the top of the centrum is called a neural arch, while the hemal arch or chevron is found underneath the centrum in the caudal (tail) vertebrae of fish. The centrum of a fish is usually concave at each end (amphicoelous), which limits the motion of the fish. This can be contrasted with the centrum of a mammal, which is flat at each end (acoelous), shaped in a manner that can support and distribute compressive forces. The vertebrae of lobe-finned fishes consist of three discrete bony elements.