Rhinolophus lepidus shortridgei ANDERSEN, 1918

Csorba, G., 2002, Remarks on some types of the genus Rhinolophus (Mammalia, Chiroptera), Annales Historico-Naturales Musei Nationalis Hungarici 94, pp. 217-226 : 219-220

Rhinolophus lepidus shortridgei ANDERSEN, 1918

The description of this taxon as a subspecies of R. lepidus from Upper Burma (Myanmar) was published by O L D F I E L D THOMAS on behalf of ANDERSEN (1918),

based on the short notes of the latter. The diagnostic characters of shortridgei ("skull and teeth averaging larger") appeared only in the key given for the species and subspecies of the pusillus-group but even without comparison of the measurements with the other named forms. According to SlNHA (1973) shortridgei differs

from R. lepidus lepidus in having a longer hind foot (55-63% of the tibia, against 45.8-47.5%) and longer mandible.

However, investigation of the type skull (BM(NH) 18.8.3.1) and other specimens (housed in the collection of USNM, FMNH, HNHM) revealed well-defined differences as compared with the other subspecies of R. lepidus ; upper canines are strong, wide-based; sagittal crest extending posteriorly to the lambda and skull length is over 17 mm. Consequently, the taxon shortridgei is considered as a full species.