The winter skate (''Leucoraja ocellata'') is a globally-endangered species of

skate Skate or Skates may refer to: Fish *Skate (fish), several genera of fish belonging to the family Rajidae * Pygmy skates, several genera of fish belonging to the family Gurgesiellidae * Smooth skates or leg skates, several genera of fish belongin ...

found in the surrounding waters of northeastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. They inhabit shallow shelf waters and are prone to

bycatch Bycatch (or by-catch), in the fishing industry, is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while fishing for specific species or sizes of wildlife. Bycatch is either the wrong species, the wrong sex, or is undersized or juve ...

during commercial fishing.

Description

The winter skate can reach a maximum size of 109 cm. It reaches maturity around 12 years of age, depending on the sex and area.

Distribution and habitat

This skate can be found in the northwest

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, ranging from North of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to South of

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. Winter skates prefer sand and gravel habitats. They are primarily found in depths below 111 m and up to 371 m and in temperatures ranging between -1.2 and -15 C. The local populations of the winter skate are not all evenly distributed. They are facing

extirpation Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...

in the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, for example, resulting in a lot fewer egg cases found on local beaches. Their range has declined 99% from the 1980s to 2015 in that sector

References

Leucoraja Endangered fauna of North America Taxa named by Samuel L. Mitchill Fauna of the Northeastern United States Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Fauna of Atlantic Canada {{Rajiformes-stub