Turbot / Brill

Turbot and Brill are flat fish called for in many European recipes, but none of these fish get any farther west than Iceland. They inhabit the coasts of Europe below the arctic circle, thorugh the Mediterranean, into the Black Sea and on the northwest corner of Africa. Suggested substitute, Petrale Sole (called "brill" in western Canada).   Photo by Luc Viatour distuributed under license Creative Commons Share-Alike v3.0 Unported.

More on Varieties of Fish (very large page).

Brill

This fish is found not far from the coast through the Mediterranean and Black Sea, and the Atlantic from northern Morocco to northern Norway, and as far west as Iceland. It is also found to a lesser extent in the Baltic Sea. It can grow to 30 inches and 17-1/2 pounds, but is commonly 12 inches. It is considered a good eating fish. IUCN Red List NE (Not Evaluated), but not thought to be threatened.   See Petrale Sole for Cooking Details   Watercolor by MacGillivray, copyright expired.

Turbot

This fish is found not far from the coast through the Mediterranean and Black Sea, and the Atlantic from northern Morocco north to northern Norway, and as far west as Iceland. It is considered a very fine eating fish throughout the region. They can get up to 39 inches and 55 pounds, but are usually about 20 inches for males and 27 inches for females. IUCN Red List NE (Not Evaluated), They are caught wild and farmed, and are not considered threatened.   See Petrale Sole for Cooking Details.

Megrim / Whiff

These fish are native to the eastern Atlantic from Morocco to the northern Norway, and as far west as Iceleand. They are also found to a lesser extent in the Mediterranean. These fish can grow to nearly 24 inches, but are commonly about 10 inches. the photo specimen was caught from around Ireland and is was probably around 11 inches long. They are more elongated than other members of the Turbot family and have larger heads. Megrim is fished commercially and is IUCN Red List NE (Not Evaluated).   See Petrale Sole for Cooking Details   Photo by Peter van der Sluijs contributed to the Public Domain.