They share similar plumage, with grey heads grading into dull grey-brown wings and bodies, and white belly and legs.

[4] Erwin Stresemann and Dean Amadon mistakenly referred to the genus as Ichthyophaga in their work, and this erroneous usage persisted for a long time.

[6] In the same year, Ronald Sluys [de] and Masaharu Kawakatsu proposed a replacement of Ichthyophaga with Piscinquilinus,[7] eliminating the controversial name for both birds and worms.

[8] However, Ernest Williams and Lucy Bunkley-Williams opposed this proposal and advocated retaining the original name for the turbellarian genus Ichthyophaga.

[9] In 2023, based on latest molecular systematic studies, the International Ornithologists' Union resurrected Icthyophaga with its right name and transferred four species from Haliaeetus to this genus.