Longheaded eagle ray | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Chondrichthyes |
Order: | Myliobatiformes |
Family: | Myliobatidae |
Genus: | Aetobatus |
Species: | A. flagellum |
Binomial name | |
Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & J. G. Schneider, 1801) |
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Synonyms | |
Raja flagellum Bloch & Schneider, 1801 |
Raja flagellum Bloch & Schneider, 1801
The longheaded eagle ray (Aetobatus flagellum) is a species of eagle ray in the family Myliobatidae. It is found in the tropical Indian Ocean off Pakistan, India and Indonesia. It formerly included populations in the northwest Pacific, but these were recognized as a separate species, Aetobatus narutobiei, in 2013. The longheaded eagle ray is found in coastal habitats and regularly in brackish water. It is a relatively small eagle ray, reaching up to 47 cm (1 ft 7 in) in width. It is poorly known, but generally uncommon and considered endangered by the IUCN.