ornate eagle ray
Aetomylaeus vespertilio (Bleeker, 1852)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The ornate eagle ray or reticulate eagle ray (Aetomylaeus vespertilio) is a species of large stingray of the family Myliobatidae. Like other rays, the ornate eagle ray is ovoviviparous. Aetomylaeus vespertilio is estimated to have a low fecundity similar to other myliobatids. It has a generation length of 15 years, and can grow as old as 24 years. It is a predatory cartilaginous fish, preying mostly on small invertebrates, polychaete worms, and some echinoderms. It has earned the nickname "unicorn of the sea" due to how rarely it is spotted in the wild.
Wikipedia contributors, Ornate eagle ray; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:08:10.512554+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Aetomylaeus vespertilio (Bleeker, 1852)
- Name authority
- (Bleeker, 1852)
- Common name
- ornate eagle ray
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Elasmobranchii
- Order
- Myliobatiformes
- Family
- Myliobatidae
- Genus
- Aetomylaeus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumChondrichthyes
- classElasmobranchii
- subclassNeoselachii
- infraclassBatoidea
- orderMyliobatiformes
- familyMyliobatidae Bonaparte, 1835
- genusAetomylaeus Garman, 1908
- speciesAetomylaeus vespertilio (Bleeker, 1852)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Aetomylaeus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Aetomylaeus bovinus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817) | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Aetomylaeus caeruleofasciatus White, Last & Baje, 2015 | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Aetomylaeus wafickii Jabado, Ebert & Al Dhaheri, 2022 | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Aetomylaeus milvus (Müller & Henle, 1841) | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Aetomylaeus nichofii (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Aetomylaeus maculatus (Gray, 1834) | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Aetomylaeus asperrimus (Gilbert, 1898) | MyliobatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Myliobatis vespertilio Bleeker, 1852 Bleeker, 1852 | synonym |
| Aetomylaeus reticulatus (Teng, 1962) (Teng, 1962) | synonym |
| Aetomylus vespertilio (Bleeker, 1852) (Bleeker, 1852) | synonym |
| Aetobatus reticulatus Teng, 1962 Teng, 1962 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=217427 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:65DP4. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.