What are flatfish?

Flatfish is a name given to a family of fishes which includes turbot, halibut, plaice and flounders. The flat fish have a very interesting feature which sets them apart from other fish. They have both eyes on one side of their heads. They are not born like this, but develop this feature soon after they are born. Why? Well, as the name suggests, flatfish spend most of their time lying flat on the bottom of the sea bed. To enable them to see in this position with both eyes, the eye on the lower side of thee head moves up gradually to join the other on the upper side, which gives the fish a most peculiar look! As well as the eye, the fish’s mouth also moves slightly, but the lopsided grin this produces doesn’t stop members of this family from being very popular as food!