Arctic Flounder: Facts & Habitat

About Arctic Flounder

The Arctic flounder (Liopsetta glacialis), also known as the Christmas flounder, eelback flounder and Polar plaice, is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish that lives on coastal mud bottoms in salt, brackish and fresh waters at depths of up to 90 metres (300 ft). Its native habitat is the polar waters of the northeastern Atlantic and Arctic oceans, from the White and Barents seas to the coasts of Siberia in Russia and Queen Maud Gulf in Canada, and from the Chuckchi and Bering seas to Bristol Bay in Alaska and the northern Sea of Okhotsk. It can grow up to 35 centimetres (14 in) in length.

NativeFresh Salt Brackish2 states

Description

The Arctic flounder is a right-eyed flatfish. Its upper side is dark olive green to dark brown in colour, sometimes with black spots or dark patches; its underside is white. Its fins are pale brown, sometimes with a yellow tinge or faint dark spots.

Diet

The diet of the Arctic flounder consists mainly of small fish and zoobenthos invertebrates such as amphipods, molluscs and marine worms.

Article text: Wikipedia contributors, Arctic flounder (source revision). Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved 2026-10-11.

Range

Where it lives

98.5%of mapped records

Share of 66 GBIF observation records with a state location, across 2 states.

Share of records by state

Habitat

Water and movement

Water: WoRMS records this species in fresh water, brackish water and the sea.

Classification

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Superclass: Actinopterygii
Class: Teleostei
Order: Pleuronectiformes
Family: Pleuronectidae
Genus: Liopsetta
Species: Liopsetta glacialis
ITIS TSN: 172913
WoRMS AphiaID: 275844
GBIF key: 2409263
Outside the US: ITIS also files it in Canada.

Common questions about Arctic Flounder

What is the scientific name of Arctic Flounder?

The scientific name is Liopsetta glacialis, in the family Pleuronectidae. Classification follows ITIS.

Does Arctic Flounder live in fresh water or salt water?

WoRMS records this species in fresh water, brackish water and the sea.

Where has Arctic Flounder been recorded in the United States?

GBIF has observations in 2 states, with the most records in Alaska, Maine. The map shows observation records, which do not establish the complete natural range.

Closest relatives