Van Gelder's bat | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Chiroptera |
Family: | Vespertilionidae |
Tribe: | Antrozoini |
Genus: | Bauerus Van Gelder, 1959 |
Species: | B. dubiaquercus |
Binomial name | |
Bauerus dubiaquercus Van Gelder, 1959 | |
Van Gelder's bat or Van Gelder's big-eared bat (Bauerus dubiaquercus) is a species of vesper bat in the family Vespertilionidae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, Honduras, and Mexico. The species is monotypic within its genus. [2] It is part of the tribe Antrozoini within the subfamily Vespertilioninae and is related to the pallid bat (Antrozous pallidus). [3] [4] The bat is found in forest habitat from sea level to elevations as high as 2300 m, although not usually above 1300 m, and is insectivorous and crepuscular. [1] It apparently has a fragmented distribution, and is threatened by deforestation. [1]
The bat was discovered by Richard Van Gelder, then curator of mammalogy at the American Museum of Natural History. The bat was collected on the AMNH Puritan Expedition to Baja California in 1957 on the Tres Maria Islands (south of Baja) by Richard Zweifel (expedition herpetologist) and Oakes Plimpton (expedition assistant). [5] Van Gelder dubbed the bat "dubiaquercus" in honor of the collectors: dubia means "doubt" in Latin, as zweifel does in German; quercus is Latin for "oak". [5]
Van Gelder's bat is found in Central America where its range includes Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua. It has been documented at a range of elevations from 100–2,300 m (330–7,550 ft) above sea level. [1]
As of 2018, it is evaluated as a near-threatened species by the IUCN. It meets the criteria for this classification because it is locally uncommon throughout its range; it is experiencing significant population declines; and its habitats are "highly fragile". [1]
Vespertilionidae is a family of microbats, of the order Chiroptera, flying, insect-eating mammals variously described as the common, vesper, or simple nosed bats. The vespertilionid family is the most diverse and widely distributed of bat families, specialised in many forms to occupy a range of habitats and ecological circumstances, and it is frequently observed or the subject of research. The facial features of the species are often simple, as they mainly rely on vocally emitted echolocation. The tails of the species are enclosed by the lower flight membranes between the legs. Over 300 species are distributed all over the world, on every continent except Antarctica. It owes its name to the genus Vespertilio, which takes its name from a word for bat, vespertilio, derived from the Latin term vesper meaning 'evening'; they are termed "evening bats" and were once referred to as "evening birds".
The pallid bat is a species of bat that ranges from western Canada to central Mexico. It is the sole species of its genus and is closely related to Van Gelder's bat, which is sometimes included in Antrozous. Although it has in the past been placed in its own subfamily (Antrozoinae) or even family (Antrozoidae), it is now considered part of the subfamily Vespertilioninae and the tribe Antrozoini.
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Richard George Van Gelder was an American mammalogist who served as the Curator of Mammalogy for the American Museum of Natural History in New York for more than twenty-five years.
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Antrozoini is a tribe of bats in the subfamily Vespertilioninae of the family Vespertilionidae. It contains the pallid bat, Van Gelder's bat, the genus Rhogeessa, and the fossil Anzanycteris. All species in this tribe are found in the Americas.
The elegant myotis is a species of vesper bat found in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.
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