Peters' epaulette bat
| Peters' epaulette bat | ||||||||||||
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| Epomophorus crypturus | ||||||||||||
| Peters , 1852 |
Peters' epaulette bat ( Epomophorus crypturus ) is a fruit bat of the genus Epomophorus , which occurs in southern Africa .
description
The species weighs around 100 g and is a large bat species in Africa with a total length (head to tail tip) of around 14.7 cm. Outwardly, Peters 'epaulette bat is similar to the Angola epaulette bat ( E. angolensis ) and Wahlbergs' epaulette bat ( E. wahlbergi ). The distribution areas of E. angolensis and E. crypturus do not overlap. From sympatrically occurring wahlbergi E. can Peters' Epaulettenflughund by the different number to be distinguished from the palate furrows, E. wahlbergi has only one groove palate, E. crypturus two. The fur is light sand-colored to light brown on the top, it is pale in color underneath. The species has white spots on the lower part of the auricle. The dark brown wings are sparsely hairy. The sexual dimorphism shows, among other things, in size and weight: the males are significantly heavier and larger than the females. In addition, only the males have the so-called epaulettes , i.e. white, about 9 mm long fur on the shoulders, which can be set up and presented for courtship. These white tufts of fur are not visible during periods of rest; they can be pulled back into special pockets.
distribution
The range of the Peters' Epaulette Bat is large and extends from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa to Mozambique , Zimbabwe , Botswana and Zambia to the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania .
Way of life
Peters' epaulette batons rest during the day in small groups or alone hanging freely between the foliage of large trees, the groups can consist of up to 100 animals. Several kilometers can lie between the habitat and the roost. The food is consumed at night; the food includes fruits of figs , the marula tree and Parinari curatellifolia , Uapaca kirkiana or Mimusops zeyheri . The fruits are not consumed directly, but transported to feeding places and eaten hanging upside down.
The females usually bring in at the beginning of the rainy season, in rare cases two young animals. However, reproduction can take place throughout the year.
The species is absent in coastal forests and appears to be more likely to occur in drier tree savannahs and gallery forests .
Systematics
Peters' epaulette bat was listed as a subspecies of the Gambian epaulette bat ( E. gambianus ). Due to the morphological differences in the skull and its occurrence in different habitats, E. crypturus is classified as a separate species.
Danger
Due to the frequency of the species and the large distribution area, it is listed by the IUCN as not endangered (“least concern”).
literature
Ara Monadjem , Peter John Taylor , FPD (Woody) Cotterill & M. Corrie Schoeman: Bats of Southern and Central Africa: A Biogeographic and Taxonomic Synthesis . 1st edition. Wits University Press, Pretoria 2010, ISBN 978-1-86814-508-9 .
Web links
- Epomophorus crypturus in the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- Epomophorus crypturus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.3. Posted by: T. Mildenstein, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Monadjem et al. (2010). Pp. 82-85
- ↑ Victor Van Cakenberghe & Ernest CJ Seamark (eds.): ACR. 2016. African Chiroptera Report 2016. African Bats . 2016, ISSN 1990-6471 , p. 66-68 .
- ↑ Epomophorus crypturus in the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ↑ Epomophorus crypturus in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2016.3. Posted by: T. Mildenstein, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2017.