Megaerops niphanae, Yenbutra & Felten, 1983

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Pteropodidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 16-162 : 63-64

3.

Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat

Megaerops niphanae

French: Cynoptere de Niphan / German: Ratanaworabhan-Altwelt-Fruchtfledermaus / Spanish: Megaerop de Niphan

Other common names: Northern Tailless Fruit Bat, Ratanaworabhan’s Fruit Bat

Taxonomy. Megaerops niphanae Yenbutra & Felten, 1983 ,

Sakaerat Environmental Research Station, Amphoe Pak Thong Chai, Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. Disjunct range, recorded in NE India and Bangladesh ( Chittagong) and in SE Asia ( Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia). Presence in all Myanmar expected, which would connect these areas.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 77-2-90 mm (tailless), ear 16-19 mm, hindfoot 10-6— 14 mm, forearm 52-63 mm; weight 22-28 g. Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Batis small and creamy-colored. Muzzle is short, with sloping forehead; nostrils are tubular and diverging, with slightly thickened rims; philtrum is thin. Lower lip has large pads. Eyesare large and bulging; iris is greenish brown. Ears are moderately long, oval, and pale brown, with darker rims. Head pelageis short, creamy yellowish to grayish brown, and cap hairs have brownish tips. Body pelage is short and soft; hairs have light gray bases and yellowish tips; and overall appearance is creamy yellow to light brown, paler ventrally. Uropatagium is narrow in center, and calcar is small. Wing membranes are brown, thumb is long, and index claw is present. Wing is inserted on side of body and attached to first toe. Skull has no basicranial deflection and is very short; rostrum is moderately deep; nasal and premaxilla are slightly projected forward; forehead is gently sloping; orbits are large, slightly rising above forehead; braincase is round; anterior zygomatic root is slightly above alveolarline; and zygoma is thin and arched. Dorsally, paranasal recesses are inflated and narrow, reaching postorbital foramen; postorbital process is thin, projecting posterolaterally; and temporal lines are incipient. Ventrally, palate is flat, and post-dental palate is long, ending with spine that continues in a middle sphenoidal ridge. Ectotympanic is small and wide, and entotympanic is long, laterally adpressed to ectotympanic. Mandible is straight and thin, coronoid istall and sloping, condyle is above alveolar line, and angle is rounded off. Upper dentition has thin and long incisors, C' is small and rather straight, P! is a spicule, next premolar (P%) is small and rounded off, and M" is low and oval in occlusal outline. Lower dentition has minute I, (I, absent), C, is very small and short, P is peg-like and larger than incisors, P_ is tall and rounded off, M, is oval, and M,is peg-like, with traces of round cusps. There are seven arched, undivided palatal ridges, followed posteriorly by two thin, divided in center, and 1-2 thinner and distally placed. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 26 and FN = 42, with 18 metacentric and six acrocentric chromosomes. X-chromosome is submetacentric, and Y-chromosome is acrocentric.

Habitat. [.owland pristine forests, deciduous forests, coniferous forests, bamboo forests, and subtropical mixed forests (foothills of Himalayas) at elevations of 100-2100 m.

Food and Feeding. Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat is a frugivore.

Breeding. A subadult Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat was found in March in Vietnam, implying births in January-February.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat has a wide distribution and presumably large population and tolerates some habitat modification.

Bibliography. Bates, Bumrungsri, Francis, Molur & Srinivasulu (2008), Giannini & Simmons (2007a), Hood et al. (1988), Islam et al. (2015), Kruskop (2013a).

Figures

1. Temminck’s Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops ecaudatus), 2. Javan Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops kusnotoi), 3. Ratanaworabhan’s Tailless Fruit Bat (Megaerops niphanae), 4. White-collared Fruit Bat (Megaerops albicollis), 5. Greater Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus sphinx), 6. Lesser Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus brachyotis), 7. Horsfield’s Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus horsfieldui), 8. Peters’s Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynoplerus luzoniensis), 9. Minute Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus minutus), 10. Nusatenggara Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynopterus nusatenggara), 11. Indonesian Short-nosed Fruit Bat (Cynoplerus titthaecheilus), 12. Lesser Musky Fruit Bat (Ptenochirus minor), 13. Greater Musky Fruit Bat (Plenochirus jagorn), 14. Mindanao Fruit Bat (Ptenochirus wetmorei)

Distribution. Disjunct range, recorded in NE India and Bangladesh ( Chittagong ) and in SE Asia ( Thailand , Laos , Vietnam , and Cambodia ). Presence in all Myanmar expected, which would connect these areas.