Slime Skate
Raja pullopunctata Smith, 1964: 285, fig. A, pl. 25. SAIAB [formerly RUSI] 37. Type locality: Algoa Bay, 31°07'E, 29°59'S, off coast of South Africa, Western Indian Ocean.
Local synonymy: Raia batis: Thompson, 1914: 156; von Bonde & Swart, 1923: 3; Barnard, 1925: 70, fig. 3, pl. 4; von Bonde, 1934: 16; Smith, 1949a: 66, fig. 65; Smith, 1965: 66, fig. 65. Raia stabuliforis: von Bonde & Swart, 1923: 12. Raja batis: Norman, 1935: 39; Fowler, 1941: 385; Bigelow & Schroeder, 1953: 146. Raja pullopunctata: Smith, 1964: 285, fig. A, pl. 25; Hulley, 1966: 505, figs. 4–5; Wallace, 1967a: 13, fig. 7; Hulley, 1970: 166, fig. 6, pl. 2; Hulley, 1972a: 86, figs. 58–59; Hulley, 1986: 123, fig. 25.15, pl. 6 in part, including D. campbelli); Stehmann, 1995: 106; Walmsley-Hart et al., 1999: 165. Raja (Dipturus) pullopunctata: Compagno et al., 1989: 92, pl.; Compagno et al., 1991: 95; Ebert et al., 1991: 73. Dipturus pullopunctata: Compagno, 1999: 116; Ebert & Compagno, 2007: 119; Ebert et al., 2008: 87; NPOA, 2013: 55; da Silva et al., 2015: 247; Ebert & van Hees, 2015: 147. Dipturus pullopunctatus: Heemstra & Heemstra, 2004: 81; Compagno & Ebert, 2007: 139, fig. 6d; Ebert, 2014: 61, fig. 88; Ebert, 2015: 177, fig. 199; Last et al., 2016f: 22; Last et al., 2016g: 270, fig. 19.61; Weigmann, 2016: 946.
South Africa voucher material: Holotype: SAIAB 37. Non-types: SAIAB 12839, SAIAB 25191, SAIAB 25192, SAIAB 25756, SAIAB 25906, SAIAB 25907, SAIAB 25908, SAIAB 25909, SAIAB 25910, SAIAB 25911, SAIAB 25912, SAIAB 25913, SAIAB 25914, SAIAB 25915, SAIAB 25916, SAIAB 25917, SAIAB 25990, SAIAB 25991, SAIAB 25992, SAIAB 25993, SAIAB 25994, SAIAB 25995, SAIAB 25996, SAIAB 25997, SAIAB 25998, SAIAB 25999, SAIAB 26229, SAIAB 26230, SAIAB 26401, SAIAB 26402, SAIAB 26959, SAIAB 27573, SAIAB 48512.
South African distribution: The Orange River (NC) to at least Algoa Bay (EC). Records from off Durban (KZN) may be based on D. campbelli.
Remarks: This distinct species was often confused by earlier researchers as Raja batis, a European species, or with Dipturus campbelli, was once considered a junior synonym of D. pullopunctatus.
Conservation status: LC (2020).