Rhinolophus guineensis, Eisentraut, 1960

Burgin, Connor, 2019, Rhinolophidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 280-332 : 282-283

5 . Guinean Horseshoe Bat

Rhinolophus guineensis

French: Rhinolophe de Guinée I German: Guinea-Hufeisennase / Spanish: Herradura de Guinea

Other common names: Senegal Horseshoe Bat

Taxonomy. Rhinolophus landeri guineensis Eisentraut, 1960 ,

near Tahiré, base of Kelesi Plateau , 500 m, Guinea.

Rhinolophus guineensis is in the landeri species group based on morphological data, although genetic data are needed to confirm this placement. It was originally described as a subspecies of R landeri but is now recognized as a distinct species. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known from scattered records in S Senegal (Niokolo-Koba National Park and Diattacounda), SW & SE Guinea (near Kindia, Simandou Range, and Mt Nimba), C Sierra Leone, N Liberia (including Liberian Mt Nimba), and E Ivory Coast; it is potentially present in Gambia in patches of relict forest.

Descriptive notes. Head-body c. 49-57 mm, tail 23-30 mm, ear 17-22 mm, hindfoot 8-10 mm, forearm 44-50 mm; weight 8-11 g. The Guinean Horseshoe Bat is similar to Lander’s Horseshoe Bat (AE. landeri ), but is larger in craniodental dimensions with wider horseshoe. Pelage is variable, with dorsum varying from brown to grayish brown, orangish brown, or pale reddish brown (individual hairs with darker tips than bases); venter is always slightly paler. Axillary tufts of males are generally white, but there is one case in which they were reddish brown. Ears are comparatively short (38—47% of forearm length) and have 11—12 internal folds. Noseleaf has hastate lancet; connecting process is subtriangular, with pointed tip; sella is naked and parallel-sided; horseshoe is narrow at 8-3-9- 3 mm; there are no lateral leaflets; and median emargination is present. Lower lip has one groove. Wings and uropatagium are dark gray, and first phalanx of fourth finger is relatively short. Skull is medium built; zygomatic arches are moderately broad; zygomatic width is slightly larger than mastoid width; palatal bridge is 26-31% of C 1- M 3 length; P2 is comparatively large and is in tooth row, being slightly displaced labially; C1 and P4 are well separated; P3 is very small to virtually vestigial and is fully displaced labially; and P 2 and P4 are in contact.

Habitat. Primarily highland regions with submontane to montane forests in Guinea, Liberia, and Ivory Coast and, to a lesser extent, lowland rainforest and forest savanna mosaic habitats in Senegal and Guinea. In Makeni, Sierra Leone, Guinean Horseshoe Bats have been recorded in disturbed areas with small patches of relict forest. They are generally found at higher elevations and have been recorded at elevations of 1400 m and above. On Guinean and Liberian Mt Nimba, they have been recorded in montane grasslands at 900-1600 m, where they are considerably common during dry seasons.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. Single embryos in Guinean Horseshoe Bats have been recorded in December in the Simandou Range, Guinea, and March near Kindia, Guinea.

Activity patterns. Guinean Horseshoe Bats are nocturnal. Two torpid individuals were captured on Mount Nimba, Guinea. They have been recorded roosting in caves throughout their distribution, although two individuals were found in hollow trees in Senegal. They have also been recorded roosting in mines. Call shape is FM/CF/ FM, with F component of 85 kHz in Guinea, which is significantly lower than in Lander’s Horseshoe Bat.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Roosts of the Guinean Horseshoe Bat are often shared with other species of Rhinolophus , Lissonycteris , Nycteris , and Hipposideros.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCNed List. The Guinean Horseshoe Bat has a constrained area of occupancy (probably less than 2000 km 2), severely fragmented distribution, and continuous decline in extent and quality of its forest and cave habitats. Major threats include deforestation resulting from logging operations, conversion of land to agricultural use, and mining activities. There is also limited threat of overhunting for bushmeat.

Bibliography. ACR (2018), Böhme & Hutterer (1978), Csorba et al. (2003), Decher et al. (2016), Denys et al. (2013), Eisentraut (1960b), ahr (2008d, 2013d), ahr & Ebigbo (2003), Grubb et al. (1998), Konstantinov et al. (2000), Monadjem, Richards & Denys (2016), Rosevear (1965), Taylor, Macdonald et al. (2018), Weber & ahr (2007b).

Figures

On following pages: 4. Lander's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus landeri); 5. Guinean Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus guineensis); 6. Blasius's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus blasii); 7. Peters's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus lobatus); 8. Swinny's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus swinnyi); 9. Cape Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus capensis); 10. Gorongosa Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus gorongosae); 11. Roberts's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus rhodesiae); 12. Bushveld Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus simulato/); 13. Dent's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus denti); 14. Cameroon Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus alticolus); 15. Mehely's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mehelyi); 16. Mediterranean Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus euryale); 17. Hildebrandt's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hildebrandtii); 18. Mount Mabu Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mabuensis); 19. Cohen's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus cohenae); 20. Smithers's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus smithersi); 21. Mozambican Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mossambicus); 22. Rüppell's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus fumigatus); 23. Eloquent Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus Bloquons).

Distribution. Known from scattered records in S Senegal (Niokolo-Koba National Park and Diattacounda), SW & SE Guinea (near Kindia, Simandou Range, and Mt Nimba), C Sierra Leone , N Liberia (including Liberian Mt Nimba), and E Ivory Coast ; it is potentially present in Gambia in patches of relict forest.