The Panther Flounder, Bothus pantherinus, belongs to the family Bothidae and is also known as the Panther Yellowsnout Flounder or Leopard Flounder. It has an oval, laterally compressed body, typically measuring around 20 centimeters (8 inches) in length, reaching a maximum of 39 centimeters (15 inches). Females are generally larger than males. Its eyes are positioned on the right side of its head. The body and fins display a pattern of dark spots and rings, reminiscent of a panther's coat, which gives the species its common name. This pattern allows for effective camouflage; the flounder can rapidly change its coloration and skin texture to match its surroundings.
It inhabits sandy or muddy bottoms, seagrass beds, and coral reef flats, found at depths ranging from 3 to 150 meters (10 to 492 feet). Juveniles may occur in very shallow reef lagoons. This benthic species is an ambush predator, remaining buried in the substrate or motionless, waiting for prey. It feeds primarily on small crustaceans, molluscs, and small fish, striking rapidly when prey approaches. It has long dorsal fins with 84 to 97 soft rays and anal fins with 61 to 73 soft rays.
The species.Bothus pantherinus (Rüppell 1830) - like a panther. ETYFish
How to recognise it
dark spots and rings on body and fins
three prominent dark blotches on lateral line
eyes on left side of head
Why it's threatened
Residential & commercial development
Housing & urban areas · Commercial & industrial areas · Tourism & recreation areas
An interesting observation about Bothus pantherinus is that Kuronuma and Abe (1972) commented that this was a common species off Kuwait and contemporary sources indicate that it is no longer common in the markets, although there is still market value for this species (M. Al-Husaini pers. comm. 2014). Pauly (1994) noted sharp declines in catches of bothid flatfishes following the development of intensive trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand. It is unknown if observation data cited above are indicative of similar declines in this flatfish species' populations where shrimp trawling occurs in the Persian Gulf. Shrimp trawling still occurs throughout the Persian Gulf, except where it is banned off Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Additionally, Saudi Arabia and Iran have a ban on fish trawling, however, shrimp trawling still occurs with restrictions on allowance of bycatch amounts, as well as, a three-month seasonal restriction (F. Kaymaram and Q. Alghawzi pers. comm. 2014). Juveniles are known from estuarine environments and are susceptible to the suite of anthropogenic activities occurring in these nearshore environments (Sheppard et al. 2010).
Threat classification from the IUCN Red List.
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