Tree bat

Tree bat
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Chiroptera
Family:	Phyllostomidae
Genus:	Ardops Miller, 1906
Species:	A. nichollsi
Binomial name
Ardops nichollsi (Thomas, 1891)
Subspecies
Ardops nichollsi annectens Miller, 1913 Ardops nichollsi koopmani Jones & Schwartz, 1967 Ardops nichollsi luciae (Miller, 1902) Ardops nichollsi montserratensis (Thomas, 1894) Ardops nichollsi nichollsi (Thomas, 1891)
Tree bat range
Synonyms
Stenoderma luciae Stenoderma nichollsi

The tree bat (Ardops nichollsi) is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae and the only species in the genus Ardops. ^[2] It is found in the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean, in Antigua, ^[3] Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Saint Lucia, Saba, Saint Martin, Sint Eustatius, Saint Kitts, Nevis, Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. ^{[1] [4]}

Taxonomy and evolution

Ardops nichollsi was described by Oldfield Thomas in 1891 as Stenoderma nichollsi, and assigned to Ardops by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. in 1906. It is the only species in the genus. ^[4] Several of the subspecies were initially considered full species, but were reconsidered in a 1967 paper by J. Knox Jones and Albert Schwartz which examined newly collected specimens and found little difference in the variation between the named species. ^[5] The subspecies vary considerably in size but otherwise are very similar. ^[5] There are five known subspecies:

• A. n monstserratensis: found on the northern Lesser Antilles, from St. Martin to Marie-Galante. Jones and Schwartz considered A. n. annectens, found on Guadeloupe, Marie-Galate, and Antigua a separate subspecies based on morphological data. However, a 2017 analysis considered it as a synonym of A. n. monsterratensis based on reanalysis of the morphological data, though they did not have any genetic data from bats from Guadeloupe to test directly. A. n. monsterratensis is the largest subspecies.
• A. n. nichollsi: found on Dominica.
• A. n. koopmani: found on Martinique.
• A. n. luciae: found on St. Lucia.
• A. n. vincentensis: found on St. Vincent. Identified by genetic analysis and smaller size in 2017. ^[6]

The genus is approximately 1.8 to 2.0 million years old. ^[6]

Description

The tree bat has brown fur, with the back varying from Prout's brown to buffy brown and the front "rich brownish, tinged with grayish white". There is a white spot where the wing meets the body, typically more prominent in females than males. ^[5]

The species is sexually dimorphic, with females larger than the males. The magnitude of the sexual dimorphism varies between the subspecies. ^[5]

Behaviour and ecology

The tree bat, as the name suggests, roosts in trees. Its habitat is typically forest. ^[6] It is a frugivore. ^[7]

In popular culture

The tree bat has been featured on the $7.5 stamp of Grenada, ^[8] and a $4 stamp from Montserrat. ^[9]

References

1. Davalos, L.; Rodriguez Duran, A. (2019). "Ardops nichollsi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T2089A21994786. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T2089A21994786.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
2. "Ardops nichollsi (Thomas, 1891)". Catalogue of Life . 2016. Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands.
3. Lindsay, Kevel C.; Kwiecinski, Gary G.; Pedersen, Scott C.; Bacle, Jean-Pierre; Genoways, Hugh H. (2010-03-01). "First record of Ardops nichollsi from Antigua, Lesser Antilles" . Mamm. 74 (1): 93–95. doi:10.1515/mamm.2009.070. ISSN   1864-1547.
4. Jones, J. Knox; Genoways, Hugh H. (June 13, 1973). "Ardops nichollsi". Mammalian Species (24): 1–2. doi: 10.2307/3503890 . JSTOR   3503890 – via academic.oup.com.
5. Jones, J. Knox; Schwartz, Albert (1967). "Synopsis of Bats of the Antillean Genus Ardops" (PDF). Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 124. doi:10.5479/si.00963801.124-3634.1.
6. Larsen, Roxanne; Larsen, Peter; Phillips, Caleb; Genoways, Hugh; Kwiecinski, Gary; Pedersen, Scott; Phillips, Carleton; Baker, Robert (2017-03-07). "Patterns of Morphological and Molecular Evolution in the Antillean Tree Bat, Ardops nichollsi (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae)". University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers.
7. Pedersen, Scott; Kwiecinski, Gary; Genoways, Hugh; Larsen, Roxanne; Larsen, Peter; Phillips, Carleton; Baker, Robert (2018-11-29). "Bats of Saint Lucia, Lesser Antilles". University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers.
8. "Tree Bat (Ardops nichollsi)". colnect (in Chinese).
9. "2017, Bats 4v m/s". freestampcatalogue.