| Antillean ghost-faced bat | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Chiroptera |
| Family: | Mormoopidae |
| Genus: | Mormoops |
| Species: | M. blainvillei |
| Binomial name | |
| Mormoops blainvillei Leach, 1821 | |
The Antillean ghost-faced bat (Mormoops blainvillei) is a species of bat in the family Mormoopidae. It is found in the Greater Antilles: Cuba, Hispaniola (the Dominican Republic and Haiti) Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.
These bats range in color from a pale cinnamon to a more reddish color, showing darker pigmentation on the dorsal side as opposed to the ventral. No molting specimens have been observed [2] and no geographic variation in color has been studied, observed or documented.
Like other species in the Mormoops genus, the Antillean ghost-faced bat shows elaborate, intricate facial outgrowths and leaflike appendages. The face features nostrils located on a fleshy pad, and coarse bristles protruding from both lips. These features aid in echolocation. [3] [4]
The fossil record for this species is limited and sparse, but the evidence found indicates a wider range which previously extended to all of the Caribbean islands as well as the Bahamas. [5]
The Antillean ghost-faced bat has been predominantly observed roosting in deeper, more sheltered caves or abandoned mine shafts, as opposed to caves with multiple entrances. [2] Here, it coexists with other bat species.
Analysis of stomach contents has shown that these bats feed exclusively on insects, which they catch utilizing a pouch formed by the large leaflike tail membrane. Target prey, mostly moths, are caught in midair. [2]
M. blainvilli is a strictly nocturnal species. The onset of activity varies from 22 to 55 minutes after sunset. This late onset has been associated with the peak activity of lepidopterans, which are their preferred prey. [2]
The flight of this bat is faster and higher than that of other bats in its genus, and a distinct humming sound has been correlated with its flight. [6] They are known to use the same biosonar vocalizations as in other echolocating bats. As the bat searches for a target (typically moths), it produces search signals with an average duration of 1.8 ms, which change from a shallow FM-sweep to a steep one. When approaching its target, M. blainvilli reduces the duration of its vocalizations. In the terminal phase, it produces a higher number of calls which are drastically shorter in duration. [7]
The morphology of M. blainvilli is similar to M. megalophylla , as the main adaptations by Mormoops bats are to reduce body weight to increase flying ability. These adaptations include decreased muscular structures, some of which are absent altogether as compared to species of Phyllostomidae. These restrictions result in a decreased range of extension. [8] The aspect ratio of the wings of one bat were calculated as 6.23, similar to M. megalophylla. [9] These characteristics are hypothesized to give the bat an advantage in terms of flight endurance, and have been adapted for its insectivorous diet. [8]
The mating season begins with copulation spanning from January to February. From March to May, pregnancies occur, and the earliest births occur in June. Weaning is completed from August to September, and in October to December, females are non-responsive to mating. Each reproductive female typically bears one child per year, with twins being reported in only two instances. [2]
The thermoneutral zone for M. blainvilli extends from 31 to 34 °C, and body temperature is maintained between these two temperatures over a wide range of ambient temperature (15–41 °C). However, as ambient temperature decreases below 28 °C, the maintenance of body temperature in individuals is less stable and has been observed in some to decrease below 25 °C. In these low temperatures, bats respond by elevating their basal metabolic rate. [10]
The Mexican free-tailed bat or Brazilian free-tailed bat is a medium-sized bat native to the Americas, so named because its tail can be almost half its total length and is not attached to its uropatagium. It has been claimed to have the fastest horizontal speed of any animal, reaching top ground speeds over 99 mph (160 km/h). It also flies the highest among bats, at altitudes around 3,300 m (10,800 ft).
The big brown bat is a species of vesper bat distributed widely throughout North America, the Caribbean, and the northern portion of South America. It was first described as a species in 1796. Compared to other microbats, the big brown bat is relatively large, weighing 15–26 g (0.53–0.92 oz) and possessing a wingspan of 32.5–35 cm (12.8–13.8 in).
The ghost bat is a species of bat found in northern Australia. The species is the only Australian bat that preys on large vertebrates – birds, reptiles and other mammals – which they detect using acute sight and hearing, combined with echolocation, while waiting in ambush at a perch. The wing membrane and bare skin is pale in colour, their fur is light or dark grey over the back and paler at the front. The species has a prominent and simple nose-leaf, their large ears are elongated and joined at lower half, and the eyes are also large and dark in colour. The first description of the species was published in 1880, its recorded range has significantly contracted since that time.
The family Mormoopidae contains bats known generally as mustached bats, ghost-faced bats, and naked-backed bats. They are found in the Americas from the Southwestern United States to Southeastern Brazil.
The greater noctule bat is a rare carnivorous bat found in Europe, West Asia, and North Africa. It is the largest and least studied bat in Europe with a wingspan of up to 46 centimetres (18 in) and is one of the few bat species to feed on passerine birds. Greater noctule bats are the only bat species to hunt birds on the wing rather than when roosting. The greater noctule bat has wings adapted for open-air hunting and uses echolocation frequencies above the hearing range of birds.
The big naked-backed bat, is a bat species from South and Central America.
The common noctule is a species of insectivorous bat common throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa.
Rafinesque's big-eared bat, sometimes known as the southeastern big-eared bat, is a species of vesper bat native to the southeastern United States.
The western small-footed bat, also known as the western small-footed myotis, is a species of vesper bat native to North America.
The long-eared myotis is a species of vesper bat in the suborder Microchiroptera. It can be found in western Canada, the western United States, and Baja California in Mexico.
The fringed myotis is a species of vesper bat that is found in British Columbia, Mexico, and the western United States.
Waterhouse's leaf-nosed bat is a species of big-eared bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in the Greater Antilles in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Hispaniola and Jamaica, as well as Mexico south to Guatemala.
Leach's single leaf bat, also known as Greater Antillean long-tongued bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in the southern Bahamas and in all the Greater Antilles. It forms large colonies, with up to a few hundred thousand individuals, and feeds on a relatively wide variety of food items including pollen, nectar, fruit and insects.
The ghost-faced bat is a bat in the genus Mormoops. It is one of only two extant species within its genus, the other being the much smaller Mormoops blainvillii. They are nocturnal and hunt using echolocation.
The sooty mustached bat is a species of bat in the family Mormoopidae. It is found in throughout the Greater Antilles, in Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.
The Madagascan rousette or Madagascar rousette, is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests.
The Seychelles sheath-tailed bat is a sac-winged bat found in the central granitic islands of the Seychelles. They are nocturnal insectivores that roost communally in caves. The species was previously abundant across much of the archipelago, but has since seen a substantial loss of habitat. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed the species as being critically endangered, due to population decline. This is mainly due to an increase in land development and the introduction of invasive species.
The pristine mustached bat is an extinct Late Quaternary species of bat in the endemic Neotropical family Mormoopidae. It was distributed in Cuba and possibly Florida.
Primicimex is a monotypic genus of ectoparasitic bed bugs in the family Cimicidae, the only species being Primicimex cavernis, which is both the largest cimicid, and the most primitive one. It feeds on bats and was described from Ney Cave in Medina County, Texas but has since been found in four other caves in Guatemala, Mexico and southern US
| Authority control databases: National |
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