Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) >
Rajiformes (Skates and rays) >
Arhynchobatidae (Softnose skates)
Etymology: Bathyraja: Greek, bathys = deep + Latin, raja, -ae = a ray (Raja sp) (Ref. 45335).
Eponymy: Dr Kiyomatsu Matsubara (1907–1968) was originally called Kiyomatsu Sakamoto but on marrying he took his wife’s name as the family surname. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; bathydemersal; depth range 120 - 2000 m (Ref. 50550). Deep-water
Northwest Pacific: off northern Japan (Ref. 559) and Sea of Okhotsk (Ref. 41724).
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 97.0, range 89 - 105 cm
Max length : 126 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 56527); max. published weight: 10.6 kg (Ref. 56527)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Differs from its congeners in having a dark purplish brown color at both sides of the body; eyeball as long as the spiracle; interorbital space smooth; clasper with deep cleft (Ref. 75535).
Deep-sea species (Ref. 8630). Small individuals feed on crabs and annelids, while larger ones prey on fish and cephalopods (Ref. 27640). Oviparous. Distinct pairing with embrace. Young may tend to follow large objects, such as their mother (Ref. 205). Eggs are oblong capsules with stiff pointed horns at the corners deposited in sandy or muddy flats (Ref. 205). Egg capsules are 10.9-11.3 cm long and 6.5-6.7 cm wide (Ref. 41249, 41253).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Oviparous, paired eggs are laid. Embryos feed solely on yolk (Ref. 50449). Distinct pairing with embrace. Young may tend to follow large objects, such as their mother (Ref. 205). Eggs have horn-like projections on the shell (Ref. 205).
McEachran, J.D. and K.A. Dunn, 1998. Phylogenetic analysis of skates, a morphologically conservative clade of elasmobranchs (Chondrichthyes: Rajidae). Copeia 1998(2):271-290. (Ref. 27314)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: of no interest
Tools
Special reports
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 0.3 - 4.1, mean 2 °C (based on 173 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00427 (0.00272 - 0.00670), b=3.08 (2.95 - 3.21), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.1 ±0.72 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Fec assumed to be <100).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Very high vulnerability (76 of 100).
