Hipposideros armiger (Hodgson, 1835)

Great leaf-nosed bat

FA — 86.0– 96.8 mm, mass — 41.0–63.0 g. A common species in China, captured in Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Henan, Sichuan, and Yunnan. Call frequencies vary with FMAXE values from 65.1–72.7 kHz recorded. Hipposideros armiger in the most southern area, Hainan, calls at the highest frequencies, 72.0–72.7 kHz (FA — 90.2–92.0 mm). FMAXE was 68 kHz in Guangdong, 68.0–68.8 kHz Guangxi, 64.8 kHz at three sites in Yunnan, 67.4–69.4 kHz in Sichuan. Gould (1979) reported that the call frequency of H. armiger is 66 kHz (FA — 91 mm) in Malaysia.

Previous records from China: Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang (Zhang, 1997; Wang, 2003).

Ecological Notes

A common and widespread bat in southern China. Once observed feeding around streetlights. Typically found in caves, including some of the largest aggregations of bats noted. Young were already flying by mid-July in Sichuan.