Revised 21 Feb. 2023
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Aetobatus Blainville 1816 aetós (Gr. ἀετός), eagle, referring to eagle-like wingspan formed by its fused pectoral fins; batus, from bátos (Gr. βάτος) or batís (βατίς), a flat fish, usually applied to a skate or ray

Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & Schneider 1801) diminutive of flagrum (L.), whip, referring to long whip-like tail

Aetobatus laticeps Gill 1865 latus (L.), wide or broad; -ceps (Neo-Latin), headed, referring to its “rather broad” head, which “nearly equals the distance from the snout to the division between the nasal lobes”

Aetobatus narinari (Euphrasen 1790) Brazilian name for this ray

Aetobatus narutobiei White, Yamaguchi & Furumitsu 2013 Naru tobi-ei (pronounced “nar-oo tobee-ay”), common name for this ray in Japanese waters where it is particularly common; Naru refers to Naru Island, where the ray was first recorded in Japan, and tobi-ei is Japanese name for eagle rays, which translates to black kite (a bird), referring to bird-like wingspan formed by its fused pectoral fins

Aetobatus ocellatus (Kuhl 1823) Latin for having little eyes (ocelli) or spots, referring to many scattered, whitish spots on dorsal surface