Perhaps the only thing most people know about a flounder fish is that it is good to eat and can be purchased year-round. There are two unusual things about this fish, however. It can change its color to match its surroundings as it moves from place to place, and early in its life one of its eyes changes location.
When it first hatches, a baby flounder looks like a typical fish. But within a few weeks it goes through a metamorphosis. Its body begins to flatten and one of its eyes changes location. While one eye remains in place, the other eye begins to move up and over the top of the head — a little bit each day for 30 to 40 days — until it comes to rest beside the one that hasn’t moved. (In some species the right eye does the traveling; in others, the left eye.) Muscle grows under the eye that will move, to push it over to the other side. Also, its skull is pliable to make this move easier.
Why do you suppose the Creator provides this kind of change to these fish? The reason is that the flounder is a member of the “flatfish” family which will spend most of its life lying flat on its side in the sand or muddy bottom of the ocean floor, snatching whatever food comes by. If both eyes remained in their original place, one eye would be of no use and would be harmed by the sand or mud on which it was lying. So the Creator provided this way of placing both eyes where they are useful.
A flounder’s eyes stick up from its head on stalks. This allows it to bury itself in the sand with only its eyes showing. In this way, they can be very hard to see yet still able to watch for their next meal. The stalks also give them good vision for seeing their surroundings. This is important because their brains get the signal from their eyes as to what colors the fish should mimic so that they will be well-camouflaged as they lie there waiting for their next meal.
What if a flounder could talk and it said, “Why do I have to have both eyes on one side of my head and lie still for most of my life, while other fish get to swim around with their eyes in normal places?” We know they don’t question the wisdom of their Creator, nor even think of Him. But what about you? If you have something in your life or your body that is different from other people, do you complain about it? Or do you trust the Lord that He has done the very best for you because He is good to all, as our opening verse says?
Did You Know?
A flounder can change its color to match its surroundings.
Messages of God’s Love 5/18/2025