Skate Characteristics and Information

Skates are a type of cartilaginous fish—fishes with skeletons made of cartilage, rather than bone—that are characterized by flat bodies and wing-like pectoral fins attached to their heads. (If you can picture a stingray, you know basically what a skate looks like.) There are dozens of species of skates. Skates live throughout the world, spending most of their time on the ocean bottom. They have strong teeth and jaws, allowing them to easily crush shells and feed on shellfish, worms, and crabs. According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, the common skate—which can reach over eight feet in length—is the largest skate species, while at only about 30 inches, the starry skate is the smallest skate species. How to Tell a Skate From a Ray Like stingrays, skates have a long, whip-like tail and breathe through spiracles, which allows the skate to rest on the ocean bottom and receive oxygenated water through openings in their heads, rather than breathing in water and sand from the ocean bottom. While many fish propel themselves by flexing their bodies and using their tails, skates move by flapping their wing-like pectoral fins. Skates may also have a prominent dorsal fin (or two fins) near the end of their tails; rays usually do not, and unlike stingrays, skates lack venomous spines in their tails. Fast Facts: Skate Classification & Species Skates are classified in the order Rajiformes, which contains a dozen families, including the families Anacanthobatidae and Rajidae, which include skates and smooth skates.ClassificationKingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ChordataClass: ElasmobranchiiOrder: RajiformesU.S. Skate SpeciesBarndoor Skate (Dipturus laevis)Big Skate (Raja binoculata)Longnose Skate (Raja rhina)Thorny Skate (Amblyraja radiata)Winter Skate (Leucoraja ocellata)Little Skate (Leucoraja erinacea) Skate Reproduction Reproduction is another way that skates differ from rays. Skates are oviparous, bearing their offspring in eggs, while rays are ovoviviparous, meaning their offspring, while beginning as eggs, remain in the mothers body after hatching and continue to mature until theyre eventually born live. Skates mate at the same nursery grounds each year. Male skates have claspers that they use to transmit sperm to the female, and eggs are fertilized internally. The eggs develop into a capsule called an egg case—or more commonly, a mermaids purse—which are deposited on the ocean floor. The egg cases either remain where theyre deposited or attach to seaweed, although they sometimes wash up on beaches and are easily recognized by their distinctive appearance (a small, flat, near-rectangular headless animal with its arms and legs outstretched). Inside the egg case, a yolk nourishes the embryos. The young may remain in the egg case for up to 15 months, and then hatch looking like miniature adult skates. Conservation and Human Uses Skates are harmless to humans. They are commercially harvested  for their wings, which are considered a delicacy, said to be similar in taste and texture to scallops. Skate wings can also be used for lobster bait, and to make fish meal and pet food. Skates are usually harvested  using  otter trawls. In addition to commercial fisheries, they may also be caught as bycatch. Some U.S. skate species, such as the thorny skate, are considered overfished, and management plans are in place to protect their populations through methods such as fishing trip limits, and possession prohibitions. Sources Bester, Cathleen. Ray and Skate Basics. Florida Museum of Natural History: Ichthyology.  Skates and Rays of Atlantic Canada: Reproduction. Canadian Shark Research Lab. 2007Coulombe, Deborah A. The Seaside Naturalist. Simon Schuster. 1984 Sosebee, Kathy. Skates—Status of Fishery Resources off the Northeastern US. NOAA NEFSC—Resource Evaluation and Assessment Division.World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). WoRMS Taxon List.

Conflict Resolution Essay - 1054 Words

Conflict Resolution Conflict is part of human existence. The world is filled with conflicts in all realms of life. Evidence of unresolved conflicts in greater scale are the chaos around the world that we hear and see from the daily world news. Everyday we experience some sort of conflict that are either insignificant or relatively important whether we are at home, at school, at a coffee shop, or at work.†¦show more content†¦A recent conflict incident in San Diego involved a medical group paying $6 million to one of their doctors that was fired for whistle blowing, that turned around and sued the medical group for wrongful termination (10news.com ). Conflicts are waste of resources, costly, and can inflict damage to the organization. Perceptions play a great influence in conflict. Disagreement or conflict usually arises when each party has different perception of a given situation. There are number of factors that influence one’s perception. Different cultural backgrounds and previous experiences create varying influences on how we deal conflicts (online training solution). It is sometimes difficult to break away from the cultural beliefs and values that someone was brought up with. Unfamiliarity also of someone’s cultural background can create negative perceptions. Pointing at someone when talking to him or her might not be considered rude to people from Asian countries, but it is typically offensive for Americans. An only child that g rew up being the family’s center of attention may sometimes find it difficult playing well with others. A co-worker of mine who is an only child admitted to me that she does not get alongShow MoreRelated Conflict Resolution Essay1288 Words   |  6 Pages Major conflict that is not dealt with can devastate a team or organization (Make Conflict Work, 2008). In some situations, conflict can be more constructive than destructive. 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Personality Types and Development of Adolescents’ Conflict with Friends This study aimed to examine the developmental pattern of adolescents’ conflict frequency and conflict resolution with their best friends, and differences in these developmental changes betweenRead MoreConflict Resolution1281 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Everyone faces conflict in their lives on a daily basis. It is an accepted and expected part of life. Conflict is not a problem in itself - it is what we do with it that counts. You cant avoid conflict in your life, at home, at work, and even at play. Wherever people interact, there is a potential for conflict. That is not bad news because good things can arise, and relationships can improve through conflict, provided conflict is managed with thought and attention. The bad newsRead MoreThird Party Conflict Resolution2113 Words   |  9 PagesThird Party Conflict Resolution MGT/445 Organizational Negotiations March 11, 2013 | | | | Third Party Conflict Resolution

Policy Tools Free Essays

Command and control regulation as defined by Michael Raegan(1987) is â€Å"a process or activity in which government requires or prescribes certain activities or behavior on the part of individuals or institutions, mostly private but sometimes public, and does so through a continuing administrative process, generally through specially designated regulatory agencies†. There is a history of command and control regulation as a policy instrument of the government in Trinidad and Tobago as evidenced by its placement in 2013 and 2014 budget in relation to the gaming ndustry. The gaming industry in Trinidad and Tobago is an illegal one, which operates without government regulation. We will write a custom essay sample on Policy Tools or any similar topic only for you Order Now As stated in the 2013 budget Minister Howai â€Å"Mr. Speaker we intend to bring the gaming industry under more effective control and capture more fully the revenue that can accrue to the Treasury. The Gaming Industry offers a legitimate form of entertainment if it is properly regulated. It was proposed that effective May 2013 a series of regulations would be put into place to manage the industry until the comprehensive framework and control body was established. In the 2014 budget Minister Howai acknowledged that previous stated policy had not been fully implemented but that vital steps were underway, which included extensive consultations with various stakeholder bodies. According to Finance Minister, the Honorable Larry Howai, a comprehensive governance structure for the industry was developed over the last year. It will entail the establishment of a Regulatory Commission with the power to license premises, operators, suppliers and key employees. The new legislation will control the operations of what will be referred to as registered casinos. The primary advantage of command and control regulation towards the gaming industry in Trinidad and Tobago is that being an illegal practice (aside from pool betting halls), government has the legislative upper hand to determine what is to be regulated and how. Mitnick (1980) explains that a government need not know in advance its subjects preferences as in the case of voluntary instruments and little information is needed to establish the regulation as a result. Government can simply establish a standard and expect compliance (Howlett and Ramesh 2009) making it a highly cost and time efficient tool. Secondly regulation in itself allows for better co-ordination of government efforts and planning because of the predictability it entails (Howlett and Ramesh 2009). This is tied to the directness and specificity of the nature of command and control regulation. This predictability and directness of the regulation makes it easier and more suitable of an instrument in times of crisis or when an immediate response is needed, as noted by the Minister that the gaming industry is substantial and growing industry with the high prevalence to criminal activity and social ills thus immediate action needs to be aken to arrest the issue before it spirals, while reaping the benefits of increasing revenue at the same time. Command and control regulation is also more cost efficient than other instruments as well as publicly and politically appealing government’s part† (Howlett and Ramesh 2009) Although command and control regulation is cost effective especially when compared to other instruments it is still quite costly, as the cost of enforcement by regulatory bodies may be high due to further costs of information, investigation and prosecution which make the policy legalistic and adversarial(Hahn and Hind 1991). Another issue with command and control in the context of the gaming industry in Trinidad and Tobago is that the very nature of the industry is problematic. Private members’ clubs, slot machines etcetera which constitute the industry are all illegal activities that have been allowed to flourish without regulation, thus the administration of the regulatory framework is problematic as it needs to gain legitimacy and acceptance by an illegitimate structure. There has to be total co-operation on the part of all members of the gaming industry in order for regulation to be effective and adhered to. Dyerson and Mueller (1993) also state that regulation is often inflexible and does not offer consideration for individual circumstances, thus a one size fits all regulation of casinos, private members clubs etc does not take into account the size and profitability or extent of gambling taking place. This may lead to incompliance with the regulatory structure and undermining of the very framework government is trying to cement. A mixed approach to regulation could be used, a good example of which is self regulation, which would be more cost effective as government would not ave to foot the cost of â€Å"creation, administration and renewal of standards† (Howlett and Ramesh). However there is a tossup as to how effective and favorable alternative methods really are when one considers the social costs of ineffective or inefficient administration of voluntary standards, especially those related to non-compliance (Gibson 1994 and Karamanos 2001) The overall usefulness of this policy tool cannot be fully assessed as it has not been fully implemented and remains largely at the drawing board. This perhaps is a sign of its ineffectiveness and inability to meet the goals of the government. How to cite Policy Tools, Papers