Distribution, growth and reproduction of the white-spotted skate Bathyraja albomaculata (Norman, 1937) around the Falkland Islands

Specimens of Bathyraja albomaculata collected on-board commercial and research vessels operating within the Falkland Islands Interim Conservation and Management Zone ranged in size between 7 - 73 cm disc width (DW), with the sexes evenly distributed throughout the depth-range studied. Both sexes displayed a negatively-skewed unimodal size-distribution above 200 m while at deeper depths the size-distribution of both sexes was bimodal, with smaller individuals accounting for an increased proportion of the population. Females matured between 29 - 46 cm DW, and males between 35 - 46 cm DW, with the size at 50% maturity occurring at 40.0 cm and 41.6 cm in males and females respectively. Gravid and post-partum females were observed year-round and throughout the species' depth range. However, there was an increase in the proportion of gravid/post-partum females during autumn and winter (March - August). Specimens were aged by incremental analysis of the dorsal thorns and the results were used to generate the von Bertalanffy equations DW_t = 70.6 (1 - e^{-0.07(t+2.39)}) and DW_t = 64.9 (1 - e^{-0.09(t+1.94)}) for males and females respectively.