Long-tongued nectar bat

Last updated

Long-tongued nectar bat
Macroglossus minimus pregnant.jpg
Pregnant individual in the Philippines
Macroglossus minimus 2.jpg
in the Philippines
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Chiroptera
Family: Pteropodidae
Genus: Macroglossus
Species:
M. minimus
Binomial name
Macroglossus minimus
(É. Geoffroy, 1810)
Long-tongued Nectar Bat area.png
Geographic range of M. minimus

The long-tongued nectar bat (Macroglossus minimus), also known as the northern blossom bat, honey nectar bat, [2] least blossom-bat, [3] dagger-toothed long-nosed fruit bat, [1] and lesser long-tongued fruit bat, [1] is a species of megabat. M. minimus is one of the smallest species in the family Pteropodidae, with an average length of 60–85 mm. It has a reddish-brown colouring with relatively long hair compared to the other species. The hair on the abdomen is a lighter colour, and a dark brown stripe runs bilaterally down the top of the head and back.

Contents

Distribution

Its wide geographical range includes Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, southern Philippines, Java, Borneo, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and northern Australia. In Borneo, it had been recorded from Kota Kinabalu, Sepilok, Sukau, and Tawau in Sabah; Bandar Seri Begawan in Brunei; Bario, Niah and Bako in Sarawak; Gunung Kenepi, Kutai, and Sungai Tengah in Kalimantan. [4]

M. minimus has not been recorded in colonies, which suggest they live in small groups or alone. It feeds on nectar and pollen, which it can obtain from mangroves and banana flowers in Malaysia. [4] Ecologically, the long-tongued nectar bat plays a major role as pollinator of many trees, including the families Bignoniaceae, Bombacaceae, Leguminosae, Musaceae, Myrtaceae, and Sonneratiaceae in peninsular Malaysia. [5] M. minimus has been recorded at elevations up to 1000 m near coastal mangroves, [6] in dipterocarp forests, and in lower montane forests. [4]

Biology

Of total captures, males constituted 53% and females 47%. About 77% were adults.

Sexually active males have enlarged testes, and polyestrous females have a breeding period of 140 to 160 days. Estimates for the gestation period for M. minimus is approximately 120  days (± 10 days), lactation occurs for 60 to 70 days. [7] In Negros Island, Philippines, females studies produced two or three young per year. [8] The species reproduces aseasonally (throughout the year) and synchronously in response to food abundance. [7] [8] [9] [10]

External measurements

For young bats, the forearm grows at 0.24 millimetres (0.0094 in) per day and weight is gained at 0.07 grams (0.0025 oz) per day. A free-flying immature bat has a forearm length of 35 millimetres (1.4 in) and weighs around 9 grams (0.32 oz). [9] The length of the head and body in adults is 60–85 millimetres (2.4–3.3 in), with the head being 26–28 millimetres (1.0–1.1 in) in length. The length of the forearm is 40–43 millimetres (1.6–1.7 in), and the weight is 12–18 grams (0.42–0.63 oz). [11] It is shorter and lighter than Macroglossus sobrinus . [6]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Waldien, D.L.; Dancy, J.; Wortham, G.; Santiago, K. (2021). "Macroglossus minimus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2021: e.T12594A22027337. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T12594A22027337.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. Bartels, W; Law, BS; Geiser, F (April 1998). "Daily torpor and energetics in a tropical mammal, the northern blossom-bat Macroglossus minimus (Megachiroptera)". Journal of Comparative Physiology B. 168 (3): 233–239. doi:10.1007/s003600050141. PMID   9591364. S2CID   16870476.
  3. Winkelmann, John R.; Bonaccorso, Frank J.; Goedeke, Elizabeth E.; Ballock, Laura J.; Ballock (May 2003). "Home Range and Territoriality in the Least Blossom Bat, Macroglossus minimus, in Papua New Guinea". Journal of Mammalogy. 84 (2). American Society of Mammalogists: 561–70. doi: 10.1644/1545-1542(2003)084<0561:hratit>2.0.co;2 . JSTOR   1383902.
  4. 1 2 3 Payne, Junaidi; Francis, Charles M. (1985). A field guide to the mammals of Borneo. Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia: Sabah Society. p. 179. ISBN   9789679994711.
  5. Start, A.N.; Marshall, A.G. (1976). "Nectarivorous bats as pollinators of trees in West Malaysia". Linnean Society Symposium Series (2): 141–150.
  6. 1 2 Nowak, Ronald M. (1 December 1994). Walker's Bats of the World . JHU Press. p.  83. ISBN   9780801849862.
  7. 1 2 Start, AN (1974). The feeding biology in relation to food source of nectivorous bats (Chiroptera: Macroglossinae) in Malaysia (PhD). University of Aberdeen.
  8. 1 2 Heideman, Paul D.; Heaney, Lawrence R.; Thomas, Rebecca L.; Erickson, Keith R. (November 1987). "Patterns of Faunal Diversity and Species Abundance of Non-Volant Small Mammals on Negros Island, Philippines". Journal of Mammalogy. 68 (4). American Society of Mammalogists: 884–888. doi:10.2307/1381575. JSTOR   1381575.
  9. 1 2 Gunnell, A. C.; Yani, M.; Kitchener, D. J. (1996). "Field observations of Macroglossus minimus(Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) on Lombook Island, Indonesia". In Kitchener, Darrell John; Suyanto, Agustinus (eds.). Proceedings of the First International Conference on Eastern Indonesian-Australian Vertebrate Fauna, Manado, Indonesia, November 22-26, 1994. Perth, Australia: Western Australian Museum for Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia. pp. 127–145. ISBN   9780730970408. OCLC   681910338.
  10. Flannery, Timothy (1990). Mammals of New Guinea. Robert Brown and Associates. ISBN   1862730296.
  11. Medway, L. (1978). Mammals of Borneo: field keys and an annotated checklist. Vol. 7. Kuala Lumpur: Monographs of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society.

Related Research Articles

<i>Nycteris</i> Genus of bats

Nycteris comprises a genus of bats commonly called slit-faced or hollow-faced bats. They are grouped in the family Nycteridae. The bats are found in East Malaysia, Indonesia, and many parts of Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tailless fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The tailless fruit bat is a species of fruit bat in the family Pteropodidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pygmy fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The pygmy fruit bat, also known as the grey fruit bat, is a species of megabat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-capped fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The black-capped fruit bat is a species of megabat in the monotypic genus Chironax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoffroy's rousette</span> Species of bat

Geoffroy's rousette is a species of megabat or Old World fruit bats. It is one of ten species in the genus Rousettus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bare-backed rousette</span> Species of bat

The bare-backed rousette is a species of megabat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dayak fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The dayak fruit bat or dyak fruit bat is a relatively rare frugivorous megabat species found only on the Sunda Shelf of southeast Asia, specifically the Malay Peninsula south of the Isthmus of Kra, and the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. There are three species in the genus Dyacopterus: D. spadiceus, D. brooksi and D. rickarti. All are found in the forests of Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines. Few specimens of any of the three species exist, due not only to their rarity, but also because they rarely enter the sub-canopy of the forest where they can be caught in scientists' nets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long-tongued fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The long-tongued fruit bat is a species of megabat. It is nectarivorous, feeding on nectar from primarily banana flowers. It is found in several countries in South and Southeast Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lesser false vampire bat</span> Species of bat

The lesser false vampire bat is a bat found in South Asia and Southeast Asia from Sri Lanka and India in the west to Indonesia and the Philippines in the east. They live in caves and tree hollows. They are insectivorous.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Pueh</span> Mountain in Malaysia

Mount Pueh, also known as Mount Pueh-Berumput, Mount Poi and Mount Poe, is a mountain located near Lundu, Sarawak on the Malaysia-Indonesia border. Mount Pueh was known to biologists for the collections made there by Eric Mjöberg (1882–1938), a Swedish naturalist, who was Curator of the Sarawak Museum between 1922 and 1924. Mjöberg's herpetological collections from Gunung Pueh between October and December 1923, and other localities in Borneo, were reported by Smith (1925). Mjöberg, unfortunately, left little by way of written records, of his ascent of Pueh and the collections he made.

<i>Macroglossus</i> Genus of bats

Macroglossus is a genus of megabats found in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. It has two species:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malayan tailless leaf-nosed bat</span> Species of bat

The Malayan tailless leaf-nosed bat is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae. It is a very small bat which has long and soft fur. The fur coloration is brown to blackish on the dorsal surface and ashy on the ventral surface. It can be distinguished from the other roundleaf bats by its small size and the absence of the tail. It is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-bellied fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The black-bellied fruit bat is a species of order bat in the family Pteropodidae.

<i>Syconycteris</i> Genus of bats

Syconycteris is a genus of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. There are three described species at present, with more likely to be added. Members of this genus are found in Indonesia, New Guinea and Australia. Their diet mainly consists of nectar and fruit, making them important for pollination and seed dispersal in their environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borneo fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The Borneo fruit bat is a species of megabat found in the mountains of Borneo, specifically East Malaysia and Brunei. It is considered a subspecies of Aethalops alecto by some authors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macroglossusinae</span> Subfamily of bats

The megabat subfamily Macroglossusinae is within the family Pteropodidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greater nectar bat</span> Species of bat

The greater nectar bat or greater dawn bat is a species of megabat within the genus Eonycteris. It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Its range is limited and includes Luzon to Maripipi in the Philippines and scattered parts of Borneo including Tuaran and Ranau in Sabah; Bau, Kuching and Bintulu in Sarawak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lesser short-nosed fruit bat</span> Species of bat

The lesser short-nosed fruit bat is a species of megabat within the family Pteropodidae. It is a small bat that lives in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It weighs between 21 and 32 grams, and measures 70 to 127 millimetres. It occurs in many types of habitat, but most frequently in disturbed forest, including lower montane forest and tropical lowland rain forest, plus gardens, mangroves, and vegetation on beaches.

References