New Zealand Smooth Skate

Dipturus innominatus

Sharks and rays
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth68–557 m
Water temperature8–19 °C
Best monthsMay
How commonOccasional

Photo credit: (c) William Harland, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

The New Zealand smooth skate is a skate of the genus Dipturus, found around New Zealand at depths between 15 and 1,300 m.

Text from the Wikipedia article “New Zealand smooth skate”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 0 records
February: 3 records
March: 13 records
April: 50 records
May: 360 records
June: 33 records
July: 2 records
August: 1 records
September: 2 records
October: 3 records
November: 3 records
December: 0 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 68–557 m · Deepest record: 1,444.5 m

0–10 m: 1 records
10–20 m: 15 records
20–30 m: 25 records
30–40 m: 67 records
40–50 m: 119 records
50–60 m: 114 records
60–70 m: 106 records
70–80 m: 109 records
80–90 m: 109 records
90–100 m: 119 records
100–110 m: 127 records
110+ m: 3,250 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 8–19 °C

6–8 °C: 6 records
8–10 °C: 51 records
10–12 °C: 219 records
12–14 °C: 341 records
14–16 °C: 253 records
16–18 °C: 113 records
18–20 °C: 11 records

Photos

Names and classification

English: New Zealand Smooth Skate, Smooth Skate

Other scientific names: Raja innominata

Similar species

Dipturus nasutus
Grey Skate
Dipturus canutus
Bight Skate
Dipturus gudgeri
Brown Bight Skate
Dipturus acrobelus
Pale Tropical Skate
Dipturus apricus
Queensland Deepwater Skate
Dipturus queenslandicus

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
4,271 open-data records from 1965 to 2018.
Species data updated November 2, 2026.

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