Habitat 
Depth 
Group 
Role WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
The Mediterranean starry skate has a pointed rhomboid disc with gently sinuous anterior margins. Small dark dots and pale spots bordered by darker points mark the light brown surface. Median thorns follow back and tail, changing with size and development. Two small dorsals lie towards the distinct tail’s end. Smoother juveniles limit identification based only on thorns.
WHERE DOES IT LIVE?
The Mediterranean centres the distribution, with documented adjacent Atlantic occurrence around Gibraltar. Its range does not include the Black Sea. Coastal sand and mud are characteristic. Common 20–50 m intervals describe frequent habitat rather than the entire depth range; deeper records extend it. Young can occupy shallower water than some adults.
WHAT DOES IT EAT?
It eats bottom-dwelling crustaceans, fishes and cephalopods. In the northern Adriatic, researchers found many crabs in the stomachs they examined. Diet proportions change with prey availability and the fish’s growth.
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