Common dab

Common dab
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Pleuronectiformes
Family:	Pleuronectidae
Genus:	Limanda
Species:	L. limanda
Binomial name
Limanda limanda (Linnaeus, 1758)
Range of the common dab

The common dab, Limanda limanda, is an edible flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish native to shallow seas around Northern Europe, in particular the North Sea, where it lives on sandy bottoms down to depths of about 100 metres (330 ft). It can reach 40 centimetres (16 in) in length and can weigh up to 1 kilogram (2.2 lb), though most specimens grow no longer than 30 centimetres (12 in).^[1][2]

Taxonomy and nomenclature

The etymology of the name dab is unclear, but the modern English use seems to originate from the Middle English dabbe.^[3] It is first recorded in the late 16th century.^[4]

The common dab was first named Pleuronectes limanda by Carl Linnaeus in the 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It has also been moved to other genera, including Liopsetta, and is now known as Limanda limanda.^[5]

Identification

The common dab has a similar appearance to both the plaice and the flounder, and similarly has both its eyes on the right-hand side of its body. The upper surface is usually pale brown in colour with scattered darker blotches and speckles, but the pectoral fins may be orange. The lateral line is marked by a distinctive semi-circular curve above the pectoral fin.^[2]

Diet

The common dab's diet consists of zoobenthos organisms such as marine worms, molluscs, sand eels, amphipods, crustaceans and echinoderms.^[2]

Commercial fishing

The dab is an abundant fish but is only occasionally landed as a commercial catch, sometimes as a by-catch of other targeted species.^[6][7]

References

1. ^ "Limanda limanda". Fishbase. 15 January 2009. Archived from the original on 3 February 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080203160803/http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=695. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Picton, B.E. & Morrow, C.C. (2005). "Limanda limanda". Encyclopaedia of Marine Life of Britain and Ireland. Habitas Online. Archived from the original on 2 August 2005. http://web.archive.org/web/20050802113355/http://www.habitas.org.uk/marinelife/species.asp?item=ZG8910. Retrieved 2009-04-28. 
3. ^ "dab". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2006. http://dictionary1.classic.reference.com/browse/dab. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
4. ^ "dab". Random House Unabridged Dictionary. Random House. 2006. http://dictionary1.classic.reference.com/browse/dab. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
5. ^ "Synonyms of Limanda limanda". Fishbase. 7 May 2005. http://www.fishbase.org/Nomenclature/SynonymsList.php?ID=695&SynCode=12972&GenusName=Limanda&SpeciesName=limanda. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
6. ^ Burton, Maurice; Burton, Robert (2002). "Dab". The international wildlife encyclopedia. 10. Marshall Cavendish. pp. 634–5. ISBN 9780761472667. 
7. ^ International Council for Exploitation of the Sea, ed (1993). North Sea quality status report 1993. Fredensborg, Denmark: Olsen and Olsen. p. 70. ISBN 9781872349077. 

This Pleuronectiformes-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Pleuronectidae Edible fish Fish of Europe Animals described in 1758 Pleuronectiformes stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР Airds Bay Airds of Kells Look at other dictionaries: common dab — paprastoji gelsvapelekė plekšnė statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Limanda limanda angl. common dab rus. ершоватка; обыкновенная лиманда ryšiai: platesnis terminas – gelsvapelekės plekšnės …   Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas DAB — For the Wikipedia disambiguation guidelines, see WP:DAB Contents 1 Companies and organisations 2 Places …   Wikipedia common oak — paprastasis ąžuolas statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Bukinių šeimos dekoratyvinis, medieninis, vaistinis nuodingas augalas (Quercus robur), paplitęs vakarų Azijoje (Kaukaze) ir Europoje. atitikmenys: lot. Quercus robur angl. British oak;… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas) dąb letni — paprastasis ąžuolas statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Bukinių šeimos dekoratyvinis, medieninis, vaistinis nuodingas augalas (Quercus robur), paplitęs vakarų Azijoje (Kaukaze) ir Europoje. atitikmenys: lot. Quercus robur angl. British oak;… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas) dąb szypułkowy — paprastasis ąžuolas statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Bukinių šeimos dekoratyvinis, medieninis, vaistinis nuodingas augalas (Quercus robur), paplitęs vakarų Azijoje (Kaukaze) ir Europoje. atitikmenys: lot. Quercus robur angl. British oak;… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas) dab — 1) a common name for various species of flatfishes (Order Pleuronectiformes). Origin unknown 2) the drowned corpse of an outcast woman (riverside thieves slang, England) …   Dictionary of ichthyology rusty dab — Sand Sand, n. [AS. sand; akin to D. zand, G. sand, OHG. sant, Icel. sandr, Dan. & Sw. sand, Gr. ?.] 1. Fine particles of stone, esp. of siliceous stone, but not reduced to dust; comminuted stone in the form of loose grains, which are not coherent …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English Sand dab — Sand Sand, n. [AS. sand; akin to D. zand, G. sand, OHG. sant, Icel. sandr, Dan. & Sw. sand, Gr. ?.] 1. Fine particles of stone, esp. of siliceous stone, but not reduced to dust; comminuted stone in the form of loose grains, which are not coherent …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English smear dab — Sand Sand, n. [AS. sand; akin to D. zand, G. sand, OHG. sant, Icel. sandr, Dan. & Sw. sand, Gr. ?.] 1. Fine particles of stone, esp. of siliceous stone, but not reduced to dust; comminuted stone in the form of loose grains, which are not coherent …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English town dab — Sand Sand, n. [AS. sand; akin to D. zand, G. sand, OHG. sant, Icel. sandr, Dan. & Sw. sand, Gr. ?.] 1. Fine particles of stone, esp. of siliceous stone, but not reduced to dust; comminuted stone in the form of loose grains, which are not coherent …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”