European plaice European plaice The European plaice ("Pleuronectes platessa") is a commercially important flatfish. The geographical range of the European plaice is off all coasts from the Barents Sea to the Mediterranean, also in the Northeast Atlantic and off Greenland. In some locales such as the Irish Sea this species is considered fully exploited by commercial fishing. It is a common flatfish, occurring on the sandy and muddy bottoms of the European shelf, usually at depths between 10 and 50 m, where they tend to burrow in sediment during day time and remain stationary for long periods. They can be found at
European flounder eyes usually migrate to the right side of the fish and what appears to be its upper surface is in reality its right side. In about thirty percent of individuals, its eyes move to the left and the left side becomes uppermost. The fish has a small mouth at the end of its bluntly pointed snout. The upper surface is fawn, olive green or pale brown with spots and larger patches of darker brown and some irregular reddish spots. The under surface is opaque pearly-white giving the fish its common name of "white fluke". The lateral line is nearly straight