European flounder the males when they measure and the females when they measure . The European flounder sometimes hybridises with European plaice ("Pleuronectes platessa") and, particularly in the western Baltic Sea, the hybrid is common. The European flounder is used for human consumption but is not so highly esteemed as the European plaice or common sole ("Solea solea"). The most important fisheries are in the Baltic Sea and the waters around the Netherlands and Denmark. In 2010, the total world catch was about nineteen thousand tonnes, mostly caught by bottom trawling. The fish is marketed fresh and frozen and can be fried,
RV Platessa in survey logbooks, collected in 1931, 1937, 1946–50, and 1968. These historical measurements have revealed that the ‘sechhi depth’ was much deeper (and therefore water more transparent) in the past compared to today, and thus that the North Sea has become much more turbid. The Suffolk Record Office holds a photograph captioned ""survey ship "Platessa" LT 205 in Lowestoft harbour after being escorted back by the Gorleston lifeboat Khami having sprung a leak whilst working in the Smiths Knoll area"", dated 5th October 1968 (after leaving MAFF service). RV Platessa RV "Platessa" (LT205) was a fisheries research vessel that was