Common name(s)

Longnose Skate.

Binomial name

Caliraja rhina.

Synonyms

Beringraja rhina.

Identification

A large skate with a wide kite-shaped disc. Disc width 1.2 x disc length. Snout very long and acutely pointed. Snout length 4-6 x orbit length. Eyes small. Anterior margins of pectoral fins broadly concave with a convex area at head level. Pectoral apices angular or narrowly rounded. Disc granular. Thorns on disc present around eyes, and nuchal and alar regions of adult males. Ventrum rough anteriorly. Pelvic fins strongly notched. Anterior pelvic lobe almost as long as posterior lobe. Tail short, slender, and depressed with broad lateral folds near tip. Tail thorns occur in multiple staggered rows. Tail length 0.65-0.81 x precloacal length. Dorsal fins broadly rounded and well separated. Caudal fin reduced to a low fold.

Colour

Dorsum usually reddish-brown or greyish-brown sometimes with indistinct darker spots or blotches. One relatively small, distinct blackish eyespot often with a pale centre on each pectoral fin, and one eye-sized white spot posterior to ocelli. Snout occasionally black. Ventrum usually greyish, mottled with dark spots and blotches.

Size

Maximum length 137cm, possibly larger. Length at hatching 12-17cm.

Habitat

Temperate seas. Demersal on sand, mud, and mixed rock and soft bottoms. Found coastally and on the continental shelf and slope. From 9-1294m, but most common between 200-400m.

Distribution

Northeast/North central Pacific. The longnose skate occurs from the southeastern Bering Sea to south of Punta Juanico on the Pacific Coast of Baja, and in the northern reaches of the Sea of Cortez.