Bates's slit-faced bat

Bates's slit-faced bat
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Chiroptera
Family:	Nycteridae
Genus:	Nycteris
Species:	N. arge
Binomial name
	Nycteris arge; Thomas, 1903
Synonyms
	Petalia arge (Thomas, 1903) ;

Bates's slit-faced bat (Nycteris arge) is a species of slit-faced bat frequently confused with Nycteris major. It is broadly distributed and common, living throughout many parts of Africa in forests and savannas.^[1]

It was described as a new species in 1903 by British zoologist Oldfield Thomas. The holotype had been collected from Cameroon by George Latimer Bates.^[2]

Description

Bates's slit-faced bat, as the common name suggests, has a "deep median furrow" down its face. Its ears are large and rounded. Its dental formula is 2.1.1.33.1.2.3 for a total of 32 teeth.^[3] It has a particularly large brain for an insectivorous bat species.^[4]

Range and status

It is found throughout Central and West Africa, including Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, and Uganda. It is found in lowland areas.^[1]

In 2017, it was evaluated as a least-concern species by the IUCN.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Monadjem, A.; Fahr, J.; Hutson, A.M.; Mickleburgh, S.; Bergmans, W. (2017). "Nycteris arge". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T14926A22016999. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T14926A22016999.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
^ Thomas, O. (1903). "Three new bats from the Cameroons, discovered by Mr. G.L. Bates". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. Series 7. 12: 633–635. doi:10.1080/00222930309487045.
^ Thomas, N. M.; Harrison, D. L.; Bates, P. J. J. (1994). "A study of the baculum in the genus Nycteris (Mammalia, Chiroptera, Nycteridae) with consideration of its taxonomic importance". Bonner zoologische Beiträge. 45 (1): 17–31.
^ Pirlot, Paul; Stephan, Heinz (1970). "Encephalization in Chiroptera". Canadian Journal of Zoology. 48 (3): 433–444. doi:10.1139/z70-075.

[iucn_status_20_November_2021-1] Monadjem, A.; Fahr, J.; Hutson, A.M.; Mickleburgh, S.; Bergmans, W. (2017). "Nycteris arge". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T14926A22016999. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T14926A22016999.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

[Thomas_1903-2] Thomas, O. (1903). "Three new bats from the Cameroons, discovered by Mr. G.L. Bates". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. Series 7. 12: 633–635. doi:10.1080/00222930309487045.

[Thomas_1994-3] Thomas, N. M.; Harrison, D. L.; Bates, P. J. J. (1994). "A study of the baculum in the genus Nycteris (Mammalia, Chiroptera, Nycteridae) with consideration of its taxonomic importance". Bonner zoologische Beiträge. 45 (1): 17–31.

[Pirlot_1970-4] Pirlot, Paul; Stephan, Heinz (1970). "Encephalization in Chiroptera". Canadian Journal of Zoology. 48 (3): 433–444. doi:10.1139/z70-075.

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