Rhinolophus pearsonii, Horsfield, 1851

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

108 . Pearson’s Horseshoe Bat

Rhinolophus pearsonii

French: Rhinolophe de Pearson / German: Pearson-Hufeisennase / Spanish: Herradura de Pearson

Taxonomy. Rhinolophus pearsonii Horsfield, 1851 ,

“ Daijeeling ,” West Bengal, India .

Rhinolophus pearsonii is placed in the pearsonii species group. Distributional limits of races are uncertain. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

R. p. pearsonii Horsfield, 1851 - N India (Uttarakhand, Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, and Mizoram), Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh,, S & SE China (Xizang, Sichuan, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Guizhou, Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, and Guangdong), Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia.

R.p. chinensis K. Andersen, 1905 - SE China (Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Fujian).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 54-68 mm, tail 16-29 mm, ear 23-29 mm, hindfoot 12-14 mm, forearm 47-57 mm; weight 13-20 g. Fur is dense and long with a woolly texture; dorsal pelage is mid-chestnut brown, while ventral pelage is lighter. Ears are large. Noseleaf has a moderately long and generally triangular lancet that is nearly parallel-sided; connecting process originates at the sella tip and forms a low round arch; sella is widened basally, suddenly constricted for the rest, being parallel-sided up to the rounded tip; horseshoe is wide (9-8-12- 8 mm), completely covering the muzzle, and has a deep median emargination. Lower lip has one mental groove. Baculum is relatively small; basal cone is large and dorso-proximal margin is deeply notched; ventral incision of the base is shaped like equilateral triangular, with a widely rounded distal portion; dorsal knob of the base is very high; ventral surface of the base has a wide median depression; shaft is dorsoventrally expanded and laterally flattened; tip is nearly rounded. Skull is strong (zygomatic width greater than mastoid width); braincase is wide and short; zygomatics are massive; anterior median swellings are low and longer than wide; lateral swellings are well developed; posterior swellings are small; sagittal crest is high to very high; supraorbital crests are moderately developed; frontal depression is moderately developed. C1 is not exceptionally strong; P2 is small to medium-sized with a small cusp, and is generally within the tooth row but sometimes slightly extruded; P3 is small to very small and extruded to a variable extent from the tooth row, or occasionally missing; P2 and P 4 are touching. Dental formula is the typical of 32 teeth or 30 when a lower premolar is missing. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 44 and FNa = 62 (Guizhou), or 2n = 42 and FNa = 64 (Anhui).

Habitat. Montane forests, bamboo forests, cultivated areas, and limestone areas. Recorded at elevations of 160-3380 m.

Food and Feeding. Pearson’s Horseshoe Bat forages for insects by aerial-hawking and perch-hunting. It appears to feed mainly on Lepidoptera and Coleoptera but has also been reported feeding, in smaller quantities, on Hemiptera, Hymenoptera , Orthoptera, Megaloptera, and Plecoptera. In Jiangxi, China, during summer, diet consisted of Coleoptera (57-7% by volume), Lepidoptera (24-7%), Hemiptera (15-9%), Hymenoptera (0-35%), Orthoptera (0-39%), Homoptera (0-42%), and unknown arthropod remains (0-46%).

Breeding. Young have been reported in May and June in China.

Activity patterns. In South Asia, Pearson’s Horseshoe Bat roosts by day in caves in hilly areas; it appears to be associated with limestone caves. Oddly, this species has been observed torpid or in hibernation while other Rhinolophus species sharing the same cave are active, in Vietnam (in November) and Thailand (in July). Call shape is FM/ CF/FM with a peak F recorded at 63-9—70 kHz (Anhui, Jiangxi, and Fujian, China), 57-6-61-6 kHz (Guangxi, China), 65 kHz in Thailand, 53-6 kHz in Cambodia, and 56-59 kHz in Laos.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Pearson’s Horseshoe Bats roost in small clusters in caves, with up to 35 bats reported in clusters in Thailand. They have been observed roosting with other Rhinolophus .

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The JCN ed List. In South Asia, while Pearson’s Horseshoe Bat is still common and widely distributed, a decline is suspected in the Himalayas because of continuous habitat degradation due to deforestation for timber and firewood, and conversion of the land for agricultural use. It is common in South-east Asia.

Bibliography. Bates & Harrison (1997), Bates, Bumrungsri & Csorba (2008e), Bates, Thi Mar-Mar et al. (2004), Chen Min et al. (2004), Chheang et al. (2013), Csorba et al. (2003), Francis (2008a), Hill (1986 b), Jiang Tinglei, Feng Jiang et al. (2008), Jiang Tinglei, Lu Guanjun et al. (2013), Khan (2001), Kruskop (2013a), Lunde et al. (2007), Mao Xiuguang, NieWenhui et al. (2007), Mao Xiuguang, Zhang Shuyi & Rossiter (2016), Molur et al. (2002), Sinha (1973), Smith & XieYan (2008), Srinivasulu & Srinivasulu (2012), Stoffberg et al. (2010), Zhang Libiao, Jones et al. (2009), Zhang Lin et al. (2018), Zhang Weidao (1985), Zhou Jiang et al. (2002).

Figures

On following pages: 94. Thomas's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus thomasi); 95. Lesser Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros); 96. rancis's Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus trancisi); 97. Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus sedulus); 98. Trefoil Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus trifoliatus); 99. Northern Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus perniger); 100. Selangor Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus luctoides); 101. Malaysian Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mono); 102. Great Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus luctus); 1.03. Beddome's Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus beddomei); 104. Formosan Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus formosaë); 105. Thailand Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus thailandensis); 106. Dobson's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus yunanensis); 107. Chiew Kwee's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus chiewkweeae); 108. Pearson's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus pearsonii); 109. Mitred Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mitratus).

Subspecies and Distribution. R. p. pearsonii Horsfield, 1851 - N India (Uttarakhand, Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, and Mizoram), Nepal , Bhutan , Bangladesh ,, S & SE China (Xizang, Sichuan, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Guizhou, Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, and Guangdong), Myanmar, Thailand, Laos , Vietnam , and Cambodia . R.p. chinensis K. Andersen, 1905 - SE China (Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Fujian).