But unlike many, it is a voracious predator, combining a lighting-like quickness with powerful, razor sharp teeth to rapidly dispatch its prey. Part of its prowess in this respect, ironically, makes it a favored target of anglers. Fishes like this flounder the strike fast but have no staying power, are possessed of flanks of white muscle, adept at quick but unsustained attacks. This white meat is mild flavored and flaky, lending itself most admirable to the culinary arts. By the same token, however, the flounders are not noted for their endurance, and the alert angler who doesn't have his rig jerked overboard during the first strike usually has little trouble landing his fish.
Southern flounders abound around channels, bay months, and adjacent substrate.
They often congregate around pilings, and rock piles where their population can be easily sampled with live bait. They may spread out thorough all reaches of an estuary, and are known to venture well upstream in the rivers that empty into bays and sounds. Cold weather signals a massive exodus offshore, and if the onset of fall is marked by a sharp vigorous cold front, thick aggregates of these flounder will mover seaward, whereas a more gradual cooling results in a likewise gradual journey. Spawning occurs following the seaward migration. This species is the principal component of the commercial flounder catch around the Gulf, and is the one responsible for the fine reputation of the flounder as a food fish.