The Finless Sole (Pardachirus marmoratus) is a tropical fish species commonly found in the undefined, including areas like the 🌊 Red Sea, 🌊 Persian Gulf, Durban in 🇿🇦 South Africa, and 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka. It typically inhabits shallow coastal waters at depths ranging from 1 to 15 meters (3 to 49 feet), where it is usually found on sandy and muddy bottoms. The finless sole reaches a maximum length of 26 cm (about 10 inches), though it is more commonly around 20 cm (roughly 8 inches).
This fish primarily feeds on invertebrates that live on the ocean floor. It is marketed fresh for consumption. One of the unique features of the finless sole is its ability to produce a bitter toxin from the base of its dorsal and anal fins. This toxin serves as a deterrent to predators, including sharks, and has potential use as a shark repellent. The name "Pardachirus" is derived from Greek, where "pardias" refers to a fish similar to the grey mullet, and "cheir" means hand.
Why it's threatened
Residential & commercial development
Housing & urban areas · Commercial & industrial areas · Tourism & recreation areas
Pardachirus marmoratus is caught as bycatch with bottom trawls and beach seines and utilized for human consumption (Carpenter et al. 1997). Population size is unknown for _Pardachirus marmoratus_in the Persian Gulf, so it is difficult to assess what impacts shrimp trawling has on this species in this region. Soleid spp. are commonly caught and landed as bycatch in trawl fisheries in the Persian Gulf. Pardachirus marmoratus is found in nearshore coastal environments, therefore, any threats from coastal development and other anthropogenic activities in these areas could have negative impacts on populations (Sheppard et al. 2010).
Threat classification from the IUCN Red List.
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