Hammerhead (flying fox)
| Hammer head | ||||||||||||
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Hammerhead ( Hypsignathus monstrosus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Hypsignathus | ||||||||||||
| H. Allen , 1861 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Hypsignathus monstrosus | ||||||||||||
| H. Allen , 1861 |
The hammer head ( Hypsignathus monstrosus ) is a mammal of the family of flying foxes (Pteropodidae). It takes its name from the voluminous skull of the male animals.
description
With a head body length of 20 to 30 centimeters, a wingspan of up to 90 centimeters and a weight of up to 420 grams, they are the largest bats on the African continent. At the same time, they show the greatest sexual dimorphism of all bats: males are about twice as heavy as females and also differ in their skull structure: the snout is massive and cuboid and appears to be cut off at the front; the mouth is surrounded by large, drooping lips. In addition, males have a greatly enlarged larynx and two air sacs that open into the pharynx. With these organs, they can make loud noises. Females, on the other hand, have the typical "dog-like" snout of the fruit bats. The fur of the hammer heads is colored gray-brown, in front of the ears there are white tufts of hair.
Way of life
Hammerheads live in central Africa , their distribution area ranges from Sierra Leone and Kenya to Angola and Zambia . They inhabit deeper forests near rivers, swamps and mangrove areas. They are nocturnal and usually rest in trees in small groups of four to five (sometimes up to 25) animals during the day.
food
The food of the hammerheads consists primarily of fruits, mainly figs, but also mangoes, bananas and guavas. They primarily consume the juices of the fruit. Males often travel up to 10 kilometers in one night in search of food and are more picky than females, who are content with inferior food.
Reproduction
Twice a year, from June to August and from December to February, over 100 males often gather in the branches. They position themselves at a distance of around 10 meters and begin to scream with their huge vocal organs, while at the same time they swing their wings. The females watch the performance, then choose a male, sit down and mate with him. Only 6% of all males are responsible for 89% of all matings. Nothing is known about the gestation period or the suckling period. Young males begin to develop the typical enlargements in the skull at around one year of age and are sexually mature at around 18 months, whereas females are sexually mature at six months.
threat
Although hammerheads are sometimes hunted for their meat and lose habitat due to the loss of gallery forests in particular , they are widespread and are not considered to be endangered by the IUCN .
literature
- Paul Langevin, Robert MR Barcley: Hypsignathus monstrosus. Mammalian Species No. 357, pp. 1-4. ( Full text ; PDF; 460 kB)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hypsignathus monstrosus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2012. Posted by: Mickleburgh, S., Hutson, AM, Bergmans, W. & driving, J., 2008. Accessed May 23, 2013.