Hipposideros beatus K. Andersen, 1906

Fig. 11 C–D

Hipposiderus beatus K. Andersen, 1906: 275, 279.

* Hipposideros beatus Andersen, 1906 .

* Hipposideros beatus maximus Verschuren, 1957: 365 .

Hayman et al. (1966: 41, map 47) reported this species from the Garamba National Park and Faradje in Haut-Uélé Province, from Buta in Bas-Uélé Province, and from Ikengo in Equateur Province, all in the northern part of the DRC. Here, we report on additional specimens from the provinces of Ituri, Mongala, and Tshopo (also in the northern part of the DRC), Sud-Kivu, and from Thysville (=Mbanza-Ngungu) in the Kongo Central Province. Also for this species, Happold (2013i: 374) gives a patchy Pan-African distribution from Sierra Leone in West Africa to the eastern DRC. In this area it is found in closed forests, degraded areas within the lowland rainforest, coastal woodlands and coastal scrub, and mosaics of thickets and grasslands, usually (possibly always) near rivers or swamps.

Recently, Heller & Volleth (2016: 3) reported on significant differences in echolocation calls for the H. beatus specimens in the DRC and those from West Africa. They do not explicitly separate the two as different species, but they suggest this should be looked at further. If this proves to be correct, beatus might be restricted to West Africa (possibly to the DRC border area) and maximus might need to be raised to species level.