Hipposideridae
Author
Don E. Wilson
Author
Russell A. Mittermeier
text
2019
2019-10-31
Lynx Edicions
Barcelona
Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats
227
258
book chapter
http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3739808
b7e93c79-44a6-4d9c-8b78-dcb62033fb0d
978-84-16728-19-0
3739808
52.
Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bat
Hipposideros cervinus
French:
Phyllorhine de Gould
/
German:
Rehbraune Rundblattnase
/
Spanish:
Hiposidérido de Gould
Other common names:
awn Horseshoe Bat
,
awn Roundleaf Bat
,
Fawn-colored Roundleaf Bat
,
Gould's Leaf-nosed Bat
Taxonomy.
Rhinolophus cervinus Gould, 1854
,
Cape York and Albany Island,
Queensland
,
Australia
.
Hipposideros ceruinus
was formerly included in the
bicolor
species group, but is now placed in the
calcaratus
species group. Future taxonomic study may prove that the Malay Peninsula population represents a different taxon. Two subspecies recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
H. c. ceruinus Gould, 1854
-Sulawesi and adjacent Is, Talaud,
Moluccas
, Kai, and Aru Is, New
Guinea
(including Waigeo and Yapen Is), Admiralty Is (Manus), Bismarck and Louisiade archipelagos, NE
Australia
(Cape York Peninsula and Moa and Albany Is), Solomon Is, and
Vanuatu
.
H. c. labuanensisTomes, 1859
-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra (includingMentawai, Enggano, and Bangka Is), Borneo, Kangean Is, and
Philippines
(
Palawan
and Mindanao Is).
Descriptive notes.
Head—body
50—55 mm
, tail
21—31 mm
, ear 14-17-5 mm, forearm
44—53 mm
; weight 6-9 g. There are no other specific measurements available. The Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bat is a small to medium-sized
Hipposideros
. Noseleaf has two supplementary leaflets. Posterior leaf has three vertical septa, which divide the posterior leaf into four cells. Pelage color is variable from grayish brown or yellowish brown to bright orange; ventral side is paler than the dorsal.
Habitat.
The Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bat usually roosts in caves but can also be found in other habitats, e.g. abandoned mines and tree hollows. It forages in lowland forest understory from sea level up to
1400 m
.
Food and Feeding.
The Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bat feeds on small beedes, moths, and other insects over shrubs, creeks and water bodies by using aerial and gleaning tactics. It can fly slowly and hover during the gleaning.
Breeding.
In
Madang Province
,
Papua New Guinea
, females give birth to a single young twice a year, with lactation peaks in March and September. Pregnant females were captured in July-September. Females become sexually mature in c.8—9 months. In peninsular
Malaysia
, lactating females were found throughout the year, with peak pregnancy in February—March.
Activity patterns.
The Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bat emerges from the roost at sunset, and sets off, flying fast within
3 m
of the ground, for its foraging grounds. It is a cavedwelling species. Echolocation is a typical CF/FM type, with a call frequency of the F segment of 144—145 kHz, with the FM segment dropping to 120 kHz. In Peninsular
Malaysia
, call frequency is 126 kHz.
Movements, Home range and Social organization.
Fawn-colored Leaf-nosed Bats roost gregariously. Colony size can be thousands of individuals. In Niah Caves, Borneo, colony size was estimated at up to 250,000 individuals. The species can be found sharing the roost with Bicolored Leaf-nosed Bats {
H. bicolor
) and antor ’s Leaf-nosed Bats {
H. galeritus
).
Status and Conservation.
Classified as Least Concern on IUCN Red List. This species is common to abundant in caves throughout its range, and forms large colonies.
Bibliography.
Bonaccorso (1998), Corbet & Hill (1992), Csorba, Bumrumgsri, Francis, Bates, Gumal, Hall & Bonaccorso (2008), Francis (2008a), Heaney eta/. (1998), Kingston eta/. (2006), Phillipps & Phillipps (2016), Simmons (2005).