MacConnell fruit vampire

MacConnell fruit vampire
	Mesophylla macconnelli
Systematics
Order :	Bats (chiroptera)
Superfamily :	Hare's mouths (Noctilionoidea)
Family :	Leaf noses (Phyllostomidae)
Subfamily :	Fruit vampires (Stenodermatinae)
Genre :	Mesophylla
Type :	MacConnell fruit vampire
Scientific name of the genus
	Mesophylla
	Thomas , 1901
Scientific name of the species
	Mesophylla macconnelli
	Thomas , 1901

The MacConnell fruit vampire ( Mesophylla macconnelli , Syn . : Vampyressa macconnelli , Ectophylla macconnelli ) is a species of bat from the family of the leaf noses (Phyllostomidae). Until 1962 it was assigned to the genus Ectophylla , which also includes the better-known white bat ( Ectophylla alba ). It is common in the tropical rainforests of Central and South America. The name Mesophylla macconnelli is derived from the Greek mesos (= medium) and phyllon (= leaf). The species is named after the scientist who significantly supported the expedition on which the species was discovered.

Distribution area of Mesophylla macconnelli

description

The MacConnell fruit vampire weighs on average 8 g and is thus slightly larger than Ectophylla alba . Another difference is the cream-colored instead of white fur. The ears and the nostrils are usually yellowish, the flight skin dark brown to black.

Way of life

The MacConnell fruit vampire is one of those bat species that use the leaves of various tropical macaws and palm species as a hanging place during the day. You modify the leaf by gnawing the ribs so that the leaf collapses into a tent. So protected from the weather and predators, they spend the day in groups of up to 8 individuals. Females have one young per year and, during the suckling period until the offspring is sexually mature, usually hang alone on a hanging place that they change every few days. Mesophylla macconnelli feeds exclusively on fruits.

distribution and habitat

The distribution of the MacConnell fruit vampire ranges from Nicaragua to the Amazon of Brazil . Despite the constant threat of habitat destruction, the IUCN assesses its existence as safe thanks to its wide distribution .

literature

TH Kunz & IM Pena: Mesophylla macconnelli , Mammalian Species , No. 405 (1992): pp. 1-5

swell

↑ Kunz, TH, Fujita, MS, Brooke, A. and McCracken, GF 1994. Convergence in Tent Architecture and Tent-Making Behavior Among Neotropical and Paleotropical Bats. Journal of Mammalian Evolution 2. pp. 57-78.
↑ Koepcke, J. 1984. "Leaf tents" as sleeping places for the bat Ectophylla macconnelli (Thomas, 1901) (Phyllostomidae) in the tropical rainforest of Peru. Mammalian Communications 31. pp. 123–126.
^ Mesophylla macconnelli in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

[1] Kunz, TH, Fujita, MS, Brooke, A. and McCracken, GF 1994. Convergence in Tent Architecture and Tent-Making Behavior Among Neotropical and Paleotropical Bats. Journal of Mammalian Evolution 2. pp. 57-78.

[2] Koepcke, J. 1984. "Leaf tents" as sleeping places for the bat Ectophylla macconnelli (Thomas, 1901) (Phyllostomidae) in the tropical rainforest of Peru. Mammalian Communications 31. pp. 123–126.

[3] Mesophylla macconnelli in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species