Zebrias

Zebrias is a genus of sole fish belonging in the Soleidae family. They are also Actinopteri fish (ray-finned fish) and Pleuronectiformes (flatfishes). Historically, flatfish such as Zebrias have evolutionary evolved very rapidly. [1] The species has been around for many many years, however research of flatfish have been greatly ignored until the 19th Century.

Zebrias
Zebrias zebra
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Pleuronectiformes
Family:	Soleidae
Genus:	Zebrias D. S. Jordan & Snyder, 1900
Type species
Solea zebrina Temminck & Schlegel, 1846
Synonyms
Haplozebrias Chabanaud, 1943 Holonodus Chabanaud, 1936 Nematozebrias Chabanaud, 1943 Pseudaesopia Chabanaud, 1934 Strabozebrias Chabanaud, 1943

All species in the genus have clear dark and pale stripes giving it a name derived from the word 'Zebra' due to the shared characteristic.[2] Both eyes are located on the top of the fish along with their coloured bands while a pectoral fin is located on the bottom.[3] The dorsal and anal fins merge in to become the caudal fin which is noticeable by its yellow marks. The fish is oval in shape in which most are seen to be 6-10cm in length, however can be as larger as 20cm. At least some members of this genus are toxic, which is a quality that some have gathered during evolution to enhance feeding.[4]

Zebrias are an all marine and benthic species found in salt water and brackish environments. They often live close to the coast in shallow waters ranging from 5–40 meters in depth. Within the water they are most commonly found in sandy areas or near seagrasses where they can blend into their environment most efficiently. They can be found in tropical environments where they are native to the coastal waters in the Indo-Pacific and Southern Australia.[5]

These species are oviparous where they shed eggs directly into the water column. Zebrias reproduce by external fertilization in which the sperm will fertilize an egg outside of the organism. Zebrias begin their life as bilaterally symmetrical larvae that swim up-right with an eye on both sides of the head. When transitioning into juvenile fish they metamorphose asymmetrically causing a dorsoventrally flattened shaped adult.[6]

Zebrias feed by swimming along the ocean floor searching for food. Their flatted bodies help with scanning food from the sea floor. Their eyes are located on the top allowing them to see food from above. They are carnivores that feed mainly on polychaete worms, molluscs, small crustaceans and other small benthic organisms.[7] They rely mostly on their visual cues to detect predators and catch prey. Often, their yellow tail is positioned vertically, which is thought to act as a lure to prey on organisms.

Zebrias, alike other flat fish, avoid predators based on hiding and camouflage where they can't be detected. To move, they undulate their dorsal and anal fins to crawl along the ocean floor. Their flat bodies and colour allow them to blend into the sea floor to match the texture of the sea floor. They also may bury themselves under the sediment if a predator is near and stay completely still making them almost completely invisible.[8]

Zebrias fish itself maintain a balanced number of species. However, they are a part of the Soleidae family in which overfishing in Europe has cause many genus of sole fish to become endangered with many declining populations. [9]

Fisheries around the world catch Zebrias in which then are marketed frozen, fresh, and dried-salted. [10]

The 18 currently recognized species in this genus are:[11]

• Zebrias altipinnis (Alcock, 1890)
• Zebrias annandalei Talwar & Chakrapany, 1967
• Zebrias cancellatus (McCulloch, 1916) (harrowed sole)
• Zebrias captivus J. E. Randall, 1995 (convict zebra sole)
• Zebrias craticula (McCulloch, 1916) (Wickerwork sole)
• Zebrias crossolepis P. S. Cheng & Y. W. Chang, 1965
• Zebrias fasciatus (Basilewsky, 1855)
• Zebrias keralensis Joglekar, 1976
• Zebrias lucapensis Seigel & Adamson, 1985
• Zebrias maculosus Oommen, 1977
• Zebrias munroi (Whitley, 1966)
• Zebrias penescalaris M. F. Gomon, 1987 (duskybanded sole)
• Zebrias quagga (Kaup, 1858) (fringefin zebra sole)
• Zebrias regani (Gilchrist, 1906) (South African zebra sole)
• Zebrias scalaris M. F. Gomon, 1987 (many-band sole)
• Zebrias synapturoides (J. T. Jenkins, 1910) (Indian zebra sole)
• Zebrias zebra (Bloch, 1787) (zebra sole)
• Zebrias zebrinus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1846