Abstract
Highly localized concentrations of elasmobranch egg capsules of the deep-water skate Bathyraja richardsoni were discovered during the first remotely operated vehicle (ROV) survey of the Hebrides Terrace Seamount in the Rockall Trough, north-east Atlantic Ocean. Conductivity-temperature-depth profiling indicated that the eggs were bathed in a specific environmental niche of well-oxygenated waters between 4·20 and 4·55° C, and salinity 34·95-35·06, on a coarse to fine-grained sandy seabed on the seamount's eastern flank, whereas a second type of egg capsule (possibly belonging to the skate Dipturus sp.) was recorded exclusively amongst the reef-building stony coral Solenosmilia variabilis. The depths of both egg-laying habitats (1489-1580m) provide a de facto refuge from fisheries mortality for younger life stages of these skates.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1473–1481 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Journal of Fish Biology |
Volume | 89 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 28 Jun 2016 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2016 |
Keywords
- Deep sea
- Elasmobranch
- Environment
- Habitat
- Reproduction
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Aquatic Science
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics