Winter Skate in its seafloor habitat

This image of a  winter skate gliding across a cobble seafloor in Long Island Sound  was taken during a May 2018 survey as part of the Long Island Sound  Seafloor Mapping Initiative. The $7 million program was funded under the Long Island Sound Cable Fund, through a court settlement brought by the states of Connecticut and New York against power and cable companies involving a permitting dispute for an underwater cable project. The Seafloor Mapping Initiative seeks to better understand, describe, and analyze the diverse habitats on the Sound’s seafloor and the animals that depend on them. The initiative also is helping to provide a better understanding of the biological, chemical, and physical effects of existing or potential cable and pipeline crossings and how to reduce their impacts. Images such as the  winter skate as well as videos and interactive “story maps” are contained in a new website developed by the University of Connecticut that provides information on the research initiative.