Lepeophtheirus pectoralis Lepeophtheirus pectoralis Lepeophtheirus pectoralis is a species of parasitic copepod. It is a parasite of flatfish, the most frequent hosts being the European flounder ("Platichthys flesus"), the plaice ("Pleuronectes platessa"), and the dab ("Limanda limanda"). It feeds on the mucus, skin and blood of the fish, with oviferous females being found in the pectoral and pelvic fins of the host, while immature individuals and males are found in the rest of the body. Its life cycle consists of five phases and ten stages. The first two stages are free swimming nauplius I and II, while the third stage is the
Peppered flounder Peppered flounder The peppered flounder ("Paralichthodes algoensis") is a flatfish of the Paralichthodidae family and the only species of the genus "Paralichthodes". It is a demersal fish that lives on sandy and muddy bottoms in subtropical waters, at depths of up to . Its native habitat is the southeastern Atlantic and the western Indian Ocean, specifically the African coastline from Mossel Bay, South Africa, to Delagoa Bay, Mozambique. It grows up to in length. The peppered flounder is a right-eyed flounder with an elongated, oval body. Its upper surface is brownish grey with small dark spots and its underside is