Dipturus campbelli (Wallace, 1967a)

Blackspot Skate

Raja campbelli Wallace, 1967a: 24, fig. 12. Holotype: SAIAB [formerly RUSI] 992 [ex ORI B804]. Type locality: 24 miles east of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Local synonymy: Raja campbelli: Wallace, 1967a: 24, fig. 12; Séret, 1989: 127. Raja pullopunctata: Hulley, 1986: 123, fig. 25.15, pl. 6. Raja (Dipturus) campbelli: Compagno et al., 1989: 92, pl. Dipturus campbelli: Compagno, 1999: 116; Heemstra & Heemstra, 2004: 81; Compagno & Ebert, 2007: 137, fig. 6a; Ebert & Compagno, 2007: 119; Ebert et al., 2008: 86; Ebert, 2014: 62, fig. 95; Ebert & van Hees, 2015: 147; Last et al., 2016f: 21; Last et al., 2016g: 246, fig. 19.37; Weigmann, 2016: 943.

South Africa voucher material: Holotype: SAIAB [former RUSI] 991 [ex ORI B804]. Paratype: SAIAB [former RUSI] 992 [ex ORI B859]. Ebert et al. (2008) examined 13 uncatalogued specimens in the SAM collection.

South African distribution: KZN coast to the border with Mozambique.

Remarks: This poorly known skate was previously misidentified as D. pullopunctatus, but the collection of additional specimens and a re-examination of the type material confirmed it as a distinct species (Compagno et al., 1989).

Conservation status: NT (2020).