There are five subspecies of black-flanked rock-wallaby:
1. Petrogale Iateralis lateralis (black-flanked rock-wallaby) which is patchily distributed through most of Western Australia south of the Kimberley;
2. Petrogale Iateralis hacketti (Recherche rock-wallaby), found only on three islands in the Archipelago of the Recherche in Western Australia;
3. Petrogale Iateralis pearsoni (Pearson island rock-wallaby), found on islands off South Australia.
4. Petrogale Iateralis centralis (central Australian rock-wallaby), found in central Australia (also known as warru by Traditional Owners of this region).
5. Petrogale Iateralis kimberleyensis (West Kimberley rock-wallaby, black-footed rock-wallaby), found in the west Kimberley (also known as wiliji by Traditional Owners of this region).
This species is known by many names in English and traditional Indigenous Australian languages, including:black-flanked rock-wallaby, black-footed rock-wallaby, side-striped rock-wallaby, warru (or waru), bokal, moororong, kakuya , lungkarrpa, pakultarra, rukapiki, tanpa, tjinangalku, tjirti, wartilara, wokartji, arrwe or kavtetve. The Latin name, Petrogale lateralis, means ‘notable-sided rock-weasel’– although these sweet animals look nothing like a weasel, and are not even distantly related to them.