A revised generic arrangement for the eagle ray family Myliobatidae, with definitions for the valid genera

Abstract

The generic arrangement of the eagle rays (Family Myliobatidae) is revised and the genus Pteromylaeus Garman, 1913 is placed into the synonymy of Aetomylaeus Garman, 1908. Definitions are provided for the three valid genera, Aetobatus, Aetomylaeus and Myliobatis, and nomenclatural issues are discussed. Aetobatus differs from the latter two genera in having: a deeply notched nasal curtain, both jaws with a single row of chevron-shaped teeth, broadly rounded pectoral-fin free rear tips, pectoral fins separate from rostral lobe and joining head at level of eye. Aetomylaeus differs from the other two genera in having: pectoral fins separate from rostral lobe and joining head below level of eye, and stinging spine absent or present (usually not well developed when present). Myliobatis differs from the other two genera in having the pectoral fins joined to the rostral lobe by a subocular ridge. A list of valid species is provided, including a list of junior synonyms. Myliobatis australis Macleay, 1881 from southern Australia is placed into the synonymy of the previously considered endemic New Zealand species, M. tenuicaudatus Hector, 1877.

Validation of photo‐identification as a mark–recapture method in the spotted eagle ray Aetobatus narinari

“…Recently, genetic evidence suggests rays with this dorsal colouration pattern, which were considered a species complex, are now three allopatric species (White, ): A. narinari , an Atlantic species (Naylor et al , ), Aetobatus ocellatus (Kuhl 1823), an Indo‐West Pacific species (White et al , ) and Aetobatus laticeps (Gill 1865), an eastern Pacific species (Naylor et al , ). There is, however, insufficient molecular or morphological evidence to determine whether the rays in the Mexican tropical Pacific, specifically those at the Chacahua Lagoon, are A. laticeps .…”

Two new species of Pseudaetobatus Cappetta, 1986 (Batoidei: Myliobatidae) from the southeastern United States

“…Teeth from the Tallahatta Formation ( Figure 7.4) have a tuberculated labial face and pitted lingual face, and the lingual transverse ridge is thick and rounded. This morphotype could be attributed to Pteromylaeus (i.e., Cappetta, 2012;Hovestadt and Hovestadt-Euler, 2013), but this genus was recently synonymized with Aetomylaeus by White (2014).…”

Introductory Chapter: The Elasmobranchs as a Fishery Resource

“…All these diversities have been "discovered," thanks to the systematic combination of molecular and morphological approaches, with molecular tools being especially useful for the delimitation of groups or species thought to contain cryptic diversity [16,17] or that need internal review [18]. Morphological analyses, in turn, provide the basic parameters necessary for the identiication and description of taxa [8].…”