It is in general much smaller than the plaise.
Although very common on the shores of the Baltic and Mediterranean seas, the dab is much more scarce on the British shores than the plaise. When in best season, during the months of February, March, and April, it is considered preferable to that fish. In the summer-time its flesh is soft and of bad flavour. The Dutch and Scots fishermen sometimes salt and dry these fish.
219. The BRILL is a flat fish somewhat like the turbot ([222]), but with its eyes on the right side of the body, the whole surface of the body smooth, and a laceration at the beginning of the dorsal fin.
These fish are not uncommon, in somewhat deeper water than the plaise, and the flounder, along the coasts of Dorsetshire, Hampshire, and some of the eastern parts ot England. They are very common at Billingsgate, and in other markets; are considered an excellent fish for the table, being white, firm, and well-flavoured; and are chiefly in season in the months of October and November.
220. The FLOUNDER (Pleuronectes flesus) is a flat fish which differs from the plaise ([217]) principally in wanting the six protuberances behind the left eye, in having the lateral line rough, short spines at the base of the upper side of the fins, and a great number of rough points on almost the whole upper surface of the body.
Its weight seldom exceeds two or three pounds.
There are few species of fish so common on the flat and somewhat muddy shores of this country as the flounder. It enters the harbours, and ascends the rivers to a considerable distance from their mouth. It is even caught in places where the water is perfectly fresh, and it is said to be much sweeter and better for the table when taken at a distance from the sea than in salt-water. On this account chiefly it is that the flounders caught in the river Thames have obtained great celebrity. They are in best season from January to March, and from July to September.
Flounders are generally caught with nets in the same way as other flat fish. But sometimes the fishermen catch them by walking gently in the shallow waters, where they abound, and stabbing an iron prong or fork through their bodies, as they lie in the mud. The places where they lie are known by the exposure only of their eyes and mouth, all the other parts of their body being concealed. Small flounders are frequently used by fishermen as bait for crabs and lobsters.
221. The SOLE (Pleuronectes solea) is a flat fish, the body of which is oblong and rough, and the upper jaw longer than the lower.
It is found off the sandy shores of nearly all parts of the world; and, though in England, it does not often exceed the might of three or four pounds, in hot climates it frequently weighs as much as seven or eight pounds.