SECTION 3 

 Little Skate {Raja svinaoea) 



Life History Summary 



The little skate is distributed in the coastal waters and shoaler 

 offshore banks from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Virginia. Little skates are 

 similar in physical appearance to winter skates, and individuals under 35 cm 

 are often misidentified. Little skates are found from the tide line to 110 m 

 on sandy, pebbly, or mud bottoms (Bigelow and Schroeder 1953). Seasonal 

 inshore to offshore migrations occur in response to temperature variations. 



Little skates are of no recreational importance and are often part of the 

 trash fish landings, although recently "skate wings" (no species 

 identification) have been marketed commercially (Waring 1982). 



Little skates spawn throughout the year, and as with all skates, 

 fertilization is internal. Their leathery rectangular egg cases, called 

 mermaids' purses, are laid on sandy bottoms. Often they will partially bury 

 the pouches to prevent them from drifting (Bigelow and Schroeder 1953). After 

 six to nine months the young skates emerge. Sexual maturity is attained in 

 three to four years. The fact that little skates have no scales or otoliths 

 makes age determinations difficult (Waring 1982). 



Food favored by little skates include crabs, shrimps, amphipods, annelid 

 worms, molluscs, and a variety of fish species (Leim and Scott 1966). 



Population estimates are not available. 



Bottom Trawl Survey Results 



The cumulative spring and autumn distributions over the time series are 

 shown in Figures 3.1 and 3.2. These plots clearly indicate overwintering in 



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