Mauritian tomb bat: Difference between revisions
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{{Cite book | last = Stuart | first = Chris | title = Field Guide to Mammals of South Africa | place = Cape Town, South Africa | publisher = Struik Publishers | origyear = 1988 | year = 2001 | page = 50 | pages = | url =http://books.google.com/books?id=sdY_sa1FPw0C&lpg=PA7&ots=Jl-o8QLtsN&dq=mauritian%20tomb%20bat&lr&pg=PA50#v=onepage&q=mauritian%20tomb%20bat&f=false | isbn = 1-86872-537-5}} |
{{Cite book | last = Stuart | first = Chris | title = Field Guide to Mammals of South Africa | place = Cape Town, South Africa | publisher = Struik Publishers | origyear = 1988 | year = 2001 | page = 50 | pages = | url =http://books.google.com/books?id=sdY_sa1FPw0C&lpg=PA7&ots=Jl-o8QLtsN&dq=mauritian%20tomb%20bat&lr&pg=PA50#v=onepage&q=mauritian%20tomb%20bat&f=false | isbn = 1-86872-537-5}} |
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Shen Y-Y, Liu J, Irwin DM, Zhang Y-P, 2010 . 5(1): e8838. |
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{{Cite journal|last1=Shen |first1=Y-Y |last2=Liu |first2=J |last3=Irwin |first3=DM |last4=Zhang |first4=Y-P|year= 2010 |title=Parallel and Convergent Evolution of the Dim-Light Vision Gene RH1 in Bats (Order: Chiroptera) |journal= PLoS ONE|volume=5(1) |url= http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0008838 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0008838 |accessdate= 25 September 2010 }} |
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[[Category:Emballonuridae]] |
[[Category:Emballonuridae]] |
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Revision as of 22:07, 25 September 2010
| Mauritian Tomb Bat | |
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| Species: | T. mauritianus
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| Binomial name | |
| Taphozous mauritianus É. Geoffroy, 1818
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The Mauritian Tomb Bat (Taphozous mauritianus) is a species of sac-winged bat in the Emballonuridae family.
Taxonomy
The French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, or Geoffroy as he is known in the literature, identified the Mauritian tomb bat in 1818 while comparing the newly described bat to another newly described bat from Egypt.[1] The Egyptian Tomb Bat (T. perforatus) is the same size as the Mauritian but does not have an all white belly.[2] Synonyms for the Mauritian tomb bat are Taphozous mauritianus, T. leucopterus, T. dobsoni, T. maritianus var. vinerascens.[3] While the name "tomb bat" and the genus Taphozous - derived from the Greek word for a grave - would suggest a macabre habitat, the Mauritian tomb bat lives out in the open.[4]
Description
The Mauritian Tomb Bat is characterized by a completely white ventral area. The color on the backside of its body is a pale brown at the base. There is a dark brown and grey mottled pattern in the center of the wings with white tips at the end of each wing . The Mauritian Tomb Bat's Wing membrane is beige in appearance. There is no difference in color or size between the male and female of the species. Generally, the adults are lighter in color than the juveniles. It has rounded and broad ears. The Mauritian tomb bat's face has a conical shape and is covered in a thin layer of hair. Below and in front of the eyes is bare. Its eyes are large(2–3 mm). It has triangular shaped ears and males have a large gular sac underneath their chin. A fully grown bat weighs from 25 to 36 grams. Its forearm is 58 to 64 millimeters long and its total length is 100 to 110 millimeters long.[5]
Distribution and Habitat
The Mauritian Tomb Bat is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Réunion, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are dry savanna and moist savanna.
Behavior
The Mauritian Tomb Bat typically roosts in pairs or alone. It roosts with its belly flat against the surface. It prefers sites where there is overhead shelter, but that are in more exposed positions, such as tree trunks and outer walls of buildings. It can detect movement from a distance away, which suggests that it has eyesight that is superior to that of other insect-eating bats. It will fly off to another site or move quickly sideways if it is disturbed. It is an aerial feeder that hunts in large open spaces or over water. Although it sometimes hunts by day, it mostly hunts at night. It feeds on insects, but chiefly on moths.
Status
The Mauritian Tomb Bat is classified as being of "Least Concern (LC)" in the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species.[6] Although its population and population trend are unknown it is an easily found bat in its known ranges.[6]
References
- ^ (Fleury Panckoucke 1828, p. 149)
- ^ (Stuart 2001, p. 50)
- ^ (Dengis 1996, p. 1)
- ^ (Dengis 1996, p. 5)
- ^ (Garbutt 2007, p. 67)
- ^ a b (Hutson et al. 2008)
Cited texts
Dengis, Carol A. (1996). "Taphozous mauritianus" (PDF). Mammalian Species. 522. American Society of Mammalogists: 1–5. Retrieved 23 September 2010. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
Fleury Panckoucke, Charles Louis (1828). Description de l'Égypte, ou Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l'expédition de l'armée française: Histoire naturelle. pp. 148–149. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
Garbutt, Nick (2007). Mauritian Tomb Bat. Vol. Mammals of Madagascar: A Complete Guide. Yale University Press. p. 67. ISBN 030012550X.
Goodman, Steven M.; Benstead, Jonathan P.; Schütz, Harald (2007). The Natural History of Madagascar. University of Chicago Geography Research Paper Series. University of Chicago Press. pp. 1292–1293. ISBN 0226303071.
Hutson, A.M.; Racey, P.; Ravino, J.; Mickleburgh, S.; Bergmans, W.; Fahr, J. (2008). "Taphozous mauritianus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.3. IUCN. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
Stuart, Chris (2001) [1988]. Field Guide to Mammals of South Africa. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik Publishers. p. 50. ISBN 1-86872-537-5.
Shen Y-Y, Liu J, Irwin DM, Zhang Y-P, 2010 . 5(1): e8838.
Shen, Y-Y; Liu, J; Irwin, DM; Zhang, Y-P (2010). "Parallel and Convergent Evolution of the Dim-Light Vision Gene RH1 in Bats (Order: Chiroptera)". PLoS ONE. 5(1). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008838. Retrieved 25 September 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)