62 



FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



Figure 25. — Barn-door skate (Raja laevis). A, dorsal view of female, about 47 inches long, Massachusetts; B, ventral 

 view of one of about 26% inches to show the black markings; C, upper teeth from center of jaw of female 50 inches long; 

 and D, upper teeth from center of jaw of male 52 inches long. B, C, and D from Nantucket Shoals. From Bigelow and 

 Schroeder. Drawings by E. N. Fischer. 



to 35 fathoms on Georges Bank and on Nantucket 

 Shoals than deeper, judging from average catches 

 of 32 per haul at 26 to 35 fathoms, 13 per haul at 

 36 to 49 fathoms, and 6 per haul at 50 to 75 

 fathoms in 42 trawl hauls by the Eugene H, late 

 June 1951, fishing from Nantucket Lightship to 

 the south-central part of Georges Bank. But the 

 Atlantis found it widespread (though not numer- 

 ous), as deep as 100 fathoms both in the open 

 trough of our gulf and in the bowl west of Jeffreys 

 Ledge during experimental trawling, in August 

 1936; and it has been reported as deep as 235 

 fathoms off Nantucket. 



The temperature range of the barn-door skate 

 is wider than that of the little skate (p. 67). They 

 are found in the southern side of the Guff of St. 

 Lawrence in the icy-cold-bottom water on the 

 banks, also, at lesser depths that warm in summer 

 to 60° F. (16° C.) or more. In the Gulf of Maine, 



at one locality or depth or another, they are ex- 

 posed to temperatures ranging from perhaps as 

 low as 32° to as high as 64 to 68° and the upper 

 limit must be considerably higher in the southern 

 part of their range. 



Garman has pointed out that the spines on the 

 snout of this skate are usually worn smooth, as 

 though used to dig in the mud or sand (very likely 

 it thus obtains the bivalves that form part of 

 its diet). It also feeds on worms, various crus- 

 taceans, particularly on large rock crabs and lob- 

 sters, shrimps, squid, and on fish. Probably it is 

 more destructive to the latter than are any other 

 of our skates thanks to its large size. Woods Hole 

 records list spiny dogfish, alewives, herring, men- 

 haden, butterfish, launce, cunners, tautog, scul- 

 pins, silver hake, hake, and flatfish among its 

 foods. No doubt cod, haddock, and other fish, 

 suffer to some extent from this skate on the off- 



