Ptenochirus wetmorei (Taylor, 1934)

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Pteropodidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 16-162 : 69

14.

Mindanao Fruit Bat

Ptenochirus wetmorei

French: Cynoptéere de Wetmore / German: Mindanao-Moschusflughund / Spanish: Ptenoguiro de Wetmore

Other common names: \ White-collared Fruit Bat

Taxonomy. Megaerops wetmorei E. H. Taylor, 1934 ,

Cotabato near Tatayan, Mindanao Island, Philippines.

Subspecies Megaerops wetmorei albicollis is here retained in Megaerops as full species ( Megaerops albicollis ) of Sundaic distribution. Monotypic.

Distribution. Endemic to Mindanao, S Philippines.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 71-76 mm, tail 3-5 mm, ear 13-15 mm, hindfoot 12—13 mm, forearm 47-52 mm; weight 16-21 g. The Mindanao Fruit Bat is small, with gray head and rusty ruff. Head is large and wide. Muzzle is wide, with gray skin; nostrils are short tubular and divergent; philtrum reaches lowerlip, ending in two pads; and two large triangular pads are on lower lip. Eyes are medium-sized; iris is chestnut-brown. Ears are moderately short, round, and uniformly light brown, and antitragus lobe is obsolescent. Head pelage is moderately long and light gray;sides are tipped with light brown. Dorsal fur is relatively long, gray, and occasionally tipped with brown. Uropatagium is well developed, and calcar is short. Ventrally, wide, rusty, long-haired ruff is more developed on shoulders and continuous across nape. Pelage in chest and belly is long and grayish brown and sometimes extends to base of forearms. Wing membranes are dark gray, index claw is present, and wing from sides of body attach to first toe. Tip ofall claws is white; metacarpals and phalanges are pale on both sides. Skull lacks basicranial deflection. Laterally, relatively deep rostrum is continuous with forehead; orbit is large; zygomatic rootis slightly above upperalveolar line; zygoma is thin, arched posteriorly; and braincase is globose. Dorsally, rostrum is moderately wide; paranasal recesses are inflated, passing posteriorly to postorbital foramina; postorbital processes are thin and long, posterolaterally directed and with almost no postorbital constriction; temporal lines are widely separated, barely marked; braincase is round; and nuchal crest is indistinct. Ventrally, palate is flat; post-dental is long, converging posteriorly; palatine rim with spine continues on sphenoidal crest; and ectotympanic is wide, anteriorly edged internally with long ribbon-like entotympanic. Mandible is straight; coronoid gently slopes, with rather wide tip; condyle is slightly above lower alveolar line; and angle is round and poorly defined. Upper incisors are small; I' is longest; C' is large, almost straight, with only tip backwardly decurved; P' is minute; and posterior cheekteeth are well developed, decreasing in height and changing from squarish to very elongate posteriorly. Lower dentition has small L; I, is absent; C, is moderately small and decurved; P| is small; posterior cheekteeth are well developed, decreasing in height and gradually becoming elongate posteriorly; and M,is peg-like.

Habitat. Lowland and montane primary and lightly disturbed rainforests at elevations of 800-1200 m.

Food and Feeding. The Mindanao Fruit Bat is primarily frugivorous and relies heavily on figs ( Ficus , Moraceae ).

Breeding. Pregnant Mindanao Fruit Bats have been found in April. Littersize is one.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List (under Megaerops wetmorei ). The Mindanao Fruit Bat has not been assessed as a species restricted to Mindanao and is probably vulnerable because of its limited distribution and preference for primary or only lightly disturbed rainforests, which are generally declining. Present in some protected areas; e.g. Mount Kitanglad National Park (Mindanao).

Bibliography. Francis (1989), Heaney, Balete et al. (1998), Heaney, Tabaranza et al. (2006), Taylor (1934).

Figures

1. Temminck’s Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops ecaudatus), 2. Javan Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops kusnotoi), 3. Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops niphanae), 4. White-collared Fruit Bat (Megaerops albicollis), 5. Greater Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus sphinx), 6. Lesser Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus brachyotis), 7. Horsfield’s Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus horsfieldui), 8. Peters’s Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynoplerus luzoniensis), 9. Minute Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus minutus), 10. Nusatenggara Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus nusatenggara), 11. Indonesian Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynoplerus titthaecheilus), 12. Lesser Musky Fruit Bat (Ptenochirus minor), 13. Greater Musky Fruit Bat (Plenochirus jagorn), 14. Mindanao Fruit Bat (Ptenochirus wetmorei)

Distribution. Endemic to Mindanao, S Philippines .