Banana bat
| Banana bat | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Musonycteris | ||||||||||||
| Schaldach & McLaughlin , 1960 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Musonycteris harrisoni | ||||||||||||
| Schaldach & McLaughlin , 1960 |
The banana bat ( Musonycteris harrisoni ) is a flower bat from the leaf-nosed family which is native to Mexico . The genus Musonycteris is monotypical , which means that besides Musonycteris harrisoni no other species of the genus is known. The generic name is derived from the Arabic word “musa” (= banana) and the Greek “nycteris” (= bat). The species name honors Ed N. Harrison, who supported the field work of William Joseph Schaldach in Mexico.
description
The banana bat has the longest snout of all flower bats . The tongue is over 76 mm long and optimally adapted to the diet, which mainly consists of nectar. The banana bat is a medium-sized flower bat with an average total length of 84.8 mm, a forearm length of 42.2 mm and an average weight of 12.6 g for males and 10.9 g for females. Like most members of the leaf- nose family, it has a conspicuous nasal blade . The fur is usually gray-brown.
Way of life
The banana bat occurs only on the Pacific coast of Mexico in thorn savannahs and deciduous forests. The region is characterized by a pronounced seasonality , with a rainy season in summer from July to October and a dry season in winter from November to May. The banana bat , like most bats, is nocturnal. The species owes its name to the fact that it was first caught between banana plants , where it apparently looked for nectar, pollen and insects in the banana flowers. On closer examination they found this type pollen of various other Night Blooming plants such as in the stomach Cordia alliodora , Alnus jorulensis , the kapok tree and representatives of the genre of morning glories . The way they eat, therefore, likely makes the banana bat an important seed disperser and pollinator for these plants. During the day it hangs in small groups in crevices and caves, which it occasionally shares with other species such as Glossophaga soricina , Macrotus waterhousii or the common vampire ( Desmodus rotundus ).
distribution and habitat
The banana bat is endemic to the Pacific coast of Mexico . The IUCN lists the species as endangered because of the relatively small population size and the high probability that the population will decline by 10% over the next decade.
literature
- G. Tellez, J. Ortega (1993): Musonycteris harrisoni. In: Mammalian Species . No. 622, pp. 1-3.