Leucoraja naevus, commonly known as the cuckoo skate or the cuckoo ray, is a species of fish belonging to the family Rajidae.
Description The cuckoo skate has a maximum total length of , and they reach maturity at a total length of for males and for females. Their snout is short and bluntly angled, and it features a tip which is slightly pronounced. The tail of the cuckoo skate is longer than the length of their disc, and it tapers towards its tip. It has 9-13 orbital thorns and no interdorsal thorns. Males have both alar and malar thorns. It has circular ocelli with a blackish background. The upper and lower jaws of the cuckoo skate have 50-60 rows. The dorsal surface is light grey to brown in colouration, while the ventral surface is white and has greyish margins for the disc and pelvic fin lobe.
Distribution and habitat The cuckoo skate is mainly found along the coasts of the Northern Atlantic Ocean and occasionally in the Mediterranean Sea.Guide of Mediterranean Skates and Rays (Leucoraja naevus). Oct. 2022. Mendez L., Bacquet A. and F. Briand. http://www.ciesm.org/Guide/skatesandrays/leucoraja-naevus It occurs between , but is most commonly found at depths of . It lives over seabeds of sand, rock, and cobble substrates.
Biology L. naevus is oviparous, with females able to deposit as many as 100 egg cases each year. The egg cases measure long and in width. Maturity is reached at 7.4 years for females and 6.8 years for males. The diet of the cuckoo skate changes as it grows, with juveniles eating crustaceans and polychaetas while adults eat bony fishes.
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