Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat
Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Chiroptera |
Family: | Pteropodidae |
Genus: | Epomophorus |
Species: | E. wahlbergi
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Binomial name | |
Epomophorus wahlbergi (Sundevall, 1846)
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Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat range |
Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat (Epomophorus wahlbergi) is a species of
Description
Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat is brown to tawny colored with white hair patches at the base of the ears. Males are typically darker in coloration than females.[2] This species is named for erectable epaulettes of hair that form around large scent glands in males only.[3][4] Males are also distinguished from females by air sacs on the neck that may increase the volume of courtship calls.[5] Scent glands are located near the white ear patches in both sexes.[4] Wings are broad as compared to other bat species.[6] Adult wingspan is 510–600 mm (20–24 in) and 456–540 mm (18.0–21.3 in) for males and females, respectively. Adults weight 54–125 g (1.9–4.4 oz).[7][8]
The eyes of E. wahlbergi are large. Ears are simple, oval-shaped, and lack a tragus. The nose is also simple, but the lips are highly folded and expansible.[4] Skulls are 44–57 mm (1.7–2.2 in) and 41–49 mm (1.6–1.9 in) long for males and females, respectively.[7]
Species of the genus Epomophorus can be distinguished from other megabats (Family Pteropodidae) by their eponymous white epaulettes.[2] A single post-dental palatal ridge in E. wahlbergi distinguishes this species from other members of the genus.[9]
Ecology
Range and Habitat
Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat is found across southern Africa in forest, shrubland, and savanna habitats at altitudes from sea level up to 2,000 m (6,600 ft).[5][10] Populations have also been found in wooded urban areas and roosting in man-made structures.[10]
Diet
Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat is frugivorous, its diet mainly consisting of figs, guava, and various fruits of Diospyros species.[6][11] Collected fruit is typically carried away from the source tree to another tree. The soft tissue and fruit are consumed while the seeds and skins are discarded.[6][12] Leaves from Balanites species and several insects may also be eaten.[11]
Behavior
Roosting
E. wahlbergi is
While roosting, E. wahlbergi is camouflaged by cryptic fur patterns. White ear spots are present in all members of the genus Epomophorus and may function to break up the outline of the head when viewed from below.[14]
Flight
Flight in Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat is relatively slow and somewhat clumsy, often bumping into other individuals and obstacles.[6] An extensive grooming period, lasting up to 30 minutes, usually precedes departure from the roost tree. Most flight occurs in the first three hours of the night.[12]
Mating and reproduction
Outside of breeding activities and parental care, social interaction typically only occurs while roosting.[12] During the mating season, males leave the roost tree, fly to another tree, and make frog-like courtship calls while displaying their erected epaulettes for up to an hour before moving to another tree.[4] Calling males position themselves approximately 50 m (175 ft) from other males and make 75–120 calls per minute.[6]
Two
Physiology
Though it does not enter
References
- . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
- ^ a b Hayman, R.W. and J.E. Hill. 1971. Order Chiroptera. In Meester, J. and H.W. Setzer (eds.) The mammals of Africa: an identification manual. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
- ^ S2CID 4133284.
- ^ ISBN 9780801849862.
Walker's Bats of the World.
- ^ a b c Kingdon, J. (1974). East African mammals: an atlas of evolution in Africa. New York: Academic Press.
- ^ PMID 936788.
- ^ a b Bergmans, W. (1988). "Taxonomy and biogeography of African fruit bats (Mammalian, Megachiroptera)". Beaufortia. 38: 75–146.
- S2CID 84744334.
- ^ a b Smithers, Reay H. N. (1983). The Mammals of the Southern African Subregion. University of Pretoria.
- ^ a b Mickleburgh, S., A.M. Hutson, and W. Bergmans. 2008. Epomophorus wahlbergi. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2.<www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 12 April 2012.
- ^ a b Pienaar, U.; Rautenbach, I. L.; de Graaf, G. (1980). The small mammals of the Kruger National Park. Pretoria: National Parks Board of Trustees.
- ^ JSTOR 1380920.
- ^ Rollinson, Dominic P; Coleman, Joy C; Downs, Colleen T (October 1, 2014). "Roost temperature and fidelity of Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat, Epomophorus wahlbergi, in an urban environment". African Zoology. 49 (2): 173–180.
- ISSN 2071-0771.
- ^ .
- ISSN 1469-7998.
- ^ Anciaux de Faveaux, M. (1972). Repartition biogeographique et cycles annuels des chiropteres d'Afrique centrale (Ph.D. dissertation). France: l’Universite de Paris.
- ^ .
- ^ Jury, M. R.; Nkosi, S. E. (2000). "Easterly flow in the tropical Indian Ocean and climate variability over south-east Africa". Water SA. 26: 147–152.
- ISBN 9781461334231.
- Acharya, L. 1992. Epomophorus wahlbergi. Mammalian Species 394: 1–4.