Aetobatus is a genus of eagle rays native to the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans.[2] It was formerly placed in Myliobatidae, but is now placed in its own family Aetobatidae based on salient differences from myliobatids, especially the pectoral fins joining the head at the level of the eyes.[3]

Aetobatus
Temporal range: 59–0 Ma Thanetian to Present[1]
Aetobatus ocellatus in Fiji
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Subclass: Elasmobranchii
Order: Myliobatiformes
Family: Aetobatidae
Genus: Aetobatus
Blainville, 1816

Species

edit

There are currently either 3 or 5 recognized extant species in this genus depending on the status of A. narinari:

Image Common Name Scientific name Distribution
  Long-headed eagle ray[4] Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & J. G. Schneider, 1801) Indo-West Pacific
  Pacific white-spotted eagle ray[5] Aetobatus laticeps (T. N. Gill, 1865) Baja California to northern Peru, including the Galápagos
  Spotted eagle ray Aetobatus narinari (Euphrasén, 1790) Atlantic (including the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico); worldwide if A. ocellatus and A. laticeps are considered subspecies
  Naru eagle ray[6] Aetobatus narutobiei W. T. White, Furumitsu, A. Yamaguchi, 2013 northwest Pacific off south Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and Vietnam
  Ocellated eagle ray[7] Aetobatus ocellatus (Kuhl, 1823) Indo-West Pacific

There are also 6 extinct species (only known from fossil remains) placed in this genus:

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Sepkoski, J. (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera (Chondrichthyes entry)". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 364: 560. Archived from the original on 2012-05-10.
  2. ^ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Aetobatus". FishBase. October 2015 version.
  3. ^ White, W. T. & Naylor, G. J. P. (2016). Resurrection of the family Aetobatidae (Myliobatiformes) for the pelagic eagle rays, genus Aetobatus. Zootaxa 4139, 435–438. 10.11646/zootaxa.4139.3.10
  4. ^ White, W.T. & Moore, A.B.M. (2013). "Redescription of Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & Schneider, 1801), an endangered eagle ray (Myliobatoidea: Myliobatidae) from the Indo–West Pacific" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3752 (1): 199–213. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3752.1.12. PMID 25229115.
  5. ^ White, W.T. (2014): A revised generic arrangement for the eagle ray family Myliobatidae, with definitions for the valid genera. Zootaxa, 3860 (2): 149–166.
  6. ^ White, W.T., Furumitsu, K. & Yamaguchi, A. (2013): A New Species of Eagle Ray Aetobatus narutobiei from the Northwest Pacific: An Example of the Critical Role Taxonomy Plays in Fisheries and Ecological Sciences. PLoS ONE, 8 (12): e83785.
  7. ^ White, W.T.; Last, P.R.; Naylor, G.J.P.; Jensen, K. & Caira, J.N. (2010). "Clarification of Aetobatus ocellatus (Kuhl, 1823) as a valid species, and a comparison with Aetobatus narinari (Euphrasen, 1790) (Rajiformes: Myliobatidae). In: Last, P.R., White, W.T. & Pogonoski, J.J (Eds.), Descriptions of New Sharks and Rays from Borneo" (PDF). CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research. Paper 032: 141–164. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-02-15. Retrieved 2015-07-28.