| Toltec fruit-eating bat | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Chiroptera |
| Family: | Phyllostomidae |
| Genus: | Dermanura |
| Species: | D. tolteca |
| Binomial name | |
| Dermanura tolteca Saussure, 1860 | |
 | |
| Toltec fruit-eating bat range | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The Toltec fruit-eating bat (Dermanura tolteca) is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is also sometimes called the "lowland fruit eating bat."
Three subspecies of the Toltec fruit-eating bat are recognized: A. t. toltecus, the nominate; A. t. hesperus; and A. t. ravus.
The Toltec fruit-eating bat is a small bat usually weighing under 16 g. The nominate is the largest of the subspecies. Its fur ranges from light brown in its northern habitats to blackish in Costa Rica and then paler in the northern ranges of South America. The darker individuals are typically found in the more humid regions while the lighter ones are in relatively dry habitats. A. t. ravus differs from the other subspecies in having white ear edges and clearer stripes below the eye. [2]
The nominate subspecies occurs along the eastern and western Mexican coast from Nuevo León and Sinaloa south through Central America including Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. It inhabits mountain ranges at mid-altitudes. [3]
A. t. hesperus is found in the Caribbean at elevations of 300-1,750 m. A. t. ravus occurs at lower elevations than the other groups in Colombia and northwest Ecuador. [2]
The species is frugivorous and feeds mostly on fruits of Constegia volcanalis , [4] of Cecropia , [1] and figs. [2]
The Toltec fruit-eating bat may roost in caves and under banana leaves, [1] but it is also one of a variety of bats that build "tents" from plant leaves, using the leaves of Anthurium species to create diurnal roost that provide camouflage and protection from the weather. The bat modifies a single leaf to create its tent, cutting the basal nerve of the leaf with its teeth but not injuring the midline nerve of the leaf and thus leaving it alive. This causes the leaf to form a pyramid-shaped tent by folding down to the midrib. [5]
The species has been classified as Least Concern by the IUCN due to its wide distribution, apparently large population numbers, and absence of known threats or population declines. [1]
The New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are 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 fruit-eating bat native to Mexico, through Central America to northwestern South America, as well as the Greater and many of the Lesser Antilles. It is also an uncommon resident of the Southern Bahamas. Populations east of the Andes in South America are now usually regarded a separate species, the flat-faced fruit-eating bat. The distinctive features of the Jamaican fruit bat include the absence of an external tail and a minimal, U-shaped interfemoral membrane.
The Honduran white bat, also called the Caribbean white tent-making bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomatidae. It is the only member of the genus Ectophylla. The genus and the species were both scientifically described for the first time in 1892. It has distinctive, entirely white fur, which is only found in six of the roughly 1,300 known species of bat. It constructs "tents" out of understory plant leaves by strategically cutting the leaf ribs with its teeth; it roosts in these tents during the day. It is a specialist frugivore, consuming almost exclusively the fruits of one species of fig. Females can likely become pregnant twice per year, giving birth to one offspring at a time.
The dark fruit-eating bat, is a bat species from South America.
Andersen's fruit-eating bat is a bat species from South America. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, and Peru.
The silver fruit-eating bat is a South American bat species of the family Phyllostomidae.
The gnome fruit-eating bat is a bat species from South America. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela. This species was originally discovered to be different from the other known species of fruit bats, but later, in 1994 were 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 white-throated round-eared bat is a South and Central American bat species found from Honduras to Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil. It creates roosts inside the nests of the termite, Nasutitermes corniger. It thrives on a mainly insect-based diet, focusing on the surfaces of foliage to hunt, and also eats fruit and pollen. It has a very wide range and is a common species over much of that range, so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".
The tent-making bat is an American leaf-nosed bat (Phyllostomidae) found in lowland forests of Central and South America. This medium-sized bat has a gray coat with a pale white stripe running down the middle of the back. Its face is characterized by a fleshy noseleaf and four white stripes. Primarily a frugivore, it may supplement its diet with insects, flower parts, pollen, and nectar. Its common name comes from its curious behavior of constructing tents out of large, fan-shaped leaves. These roosts provide excellent protection from the tropical rains, and a single tent roost may house several bats at once. This bat is quite common in its geographic range; hence, its conservation status is listed as Least Concern.
Dermanura is a genus of leaf-nosed bats.
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 parts of the Caribbean.
The Antillean fruit-eating bat is one of two leaf-nosed bat species belonging to the genus Brachyphylla. The species occurs in the Caribbean from Puerto Rico to St. Vincent and Barbados. Fossil specimens have also been recorded from New Providence, Bahamas.
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 Honduran fruit-eating bat is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua.
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.
Stenodermatinae is a large subfamily of bats in the family Phyllostomidae.
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.
The Bogota fruit-eating bat is a species of bat found in South America.
Dermanura rava is a species of leaf-nosed bat found in Central and South America.
