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Home > Sea Fishing & Aquaculture > Recreational Fishing > Fishing Rules by Species > Flounder

Flounder

Common names: Greenback Flounder, Longsnout Flounder, Melbourne flounder, southern flounder, sole.

Minimum size: 25cm.

Possession limit: 30. Possession limits apply everywhere, including in the home.

Flounder and sole are mainly dark green to light brown colouration above with a white underbelly, but fish may vary their colour to blend into their environment.

Greenback flounder can reach a maximum size of around 40cm (0.6kg) at 3-4 years of age.

There are some 12 species of flounder and only one species of sole found in Tasmanian waters.

The most common flounder found in Tasmanian coastal estuaries and bays are the greenback flounder (above) and the longsnout flounder (below). It is the longsnout flounder that is frequently referred to (incorrectly) as sole.

Distribution of flounder occurs from freshwater through to 100m.

A popular eating fish commonly caught on shallow coastal sandy flats using spears and lights at night or in specially-designed bottom set gillnets called flounder nets.

They are rarely caught on lines.

Flounder feed by digging for polychaete worms and small crustaceans in the sand and mud habitat they inhabit.

Spawning occurs offshore in water depths of around 20m during times of extended colder water temperatures in June-October.

Little is known of the biomass and growth of the greenback flounder.

Fish illustrations by Peter Gouldthorpe

Tasmania Online | Service Tasmania

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