The New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are bats found from southern North America to South America, specifically from the Southwest United States to northern Argentina. They are ecologically the most varied and diverse family within the order Chiroptera. Most species are insectivorous, but the phyllostomid bats include within their number true predatory species and frugivores. For example, the spectral bat, the largest bat in the Americas, eats vertebrate prey, including small, dove-sized birds. Members of this family have evolved to use food groups such as fruit, nectar, pollen, insects, frogs, other bats, and small vertebrates, and in the case of the vampire bats, even blood.
The Jamaican, common, or Mexican fruit bat is a frugivorous bat species native to the Neotropics.
The big-eared woolly bat or (Peters's) woolly false vampire bat is a species of bat, belonging to the family Phyllostomidae.
The fringed fruit-eating bat, is a species of bat native to South America.
The dark fruit-eating bat, is a bat species from South America.
Andersen's fruit-eating bat is a bat species found in South America.
The silver fruit-eating bat is a South American bat species of the family Phyllostomidae.
The gnome fruit-eating bat is a bat species found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela. This species was originally determined to be different from the other known species of fruit bats, but later, in 1994 was mistakenly grouped under Artibeus cinereus as a synonym. However, this has since been corrected by more closely studying their physical differences and by biomolecular analysis.
The pygmy fruit-eating bat is a bat of the family Phyllostomidae. The specific name phaeotis is of Greek derivation, coming from the word phaios meaning dusky, referring to their dusky gray coloration.
The Neotropical fruit bats (Artibeus) are a genus of bats within the subfamily Stenodermatinae. The genus consists of 12 species, which are native to Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean.
The fraternal fruit-eating bat is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae that is found in drier habitats in Ecuador and Peru. It was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Jamaican fruit bat, but was raised to species level in 1978. The smallest species in the group of large Artibeus, it has a forearm length of 52–59 mm (2.0–2.3 in), a total length of 64–76 mm (2.5–3.0 in), and a weight of 30–55 g (1.1–1.9 oz).
The flat-faced fruit-eating bat is a South American species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Jamaican fruit bat, but can be distinguished by its larger size, the presence of faint stripes on the face, and of a third molar tooth on each side of the upper jaw. Genetic analysis has also shown that the two species may not be closely related.
Thomas's fruit-eating bat, sometimes also popularly called Watson's fruit-eating bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found from southern Mexico, through Central America to Colombia. Its South American range is to the west of the Andes. The species name is in honor of H. J. Watson, a plantation owner in western Panama who used to send specimens to the British Natural History Museum, where Oldfield Thomas would often describe them.
Artibeus schwartzi, or Schwartz's fruit-eating bat, is a species of bat found in the Lesser Antilles. It was previously considered a subspecies of the Jamaican fruit bat,. It has been hypothesized that it arose from hybridization of three Artibeus species: A. jamaicensis, A. planirostris, and an unknown third species.
