Thyroptera lavali, Pine, 1993

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Thyropteridae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 418-423 : 422-423

3 .

LaVal’s Disk-winged Bat

Thyroptera lavali

French: Thyroptére de LaVal / German: LaVal-Haftscheibenfledermaus / Spanish: Tiroptero de LaVal

Taxonomy. Thyroptera lavali Pine, 1993 ,

“ PERU: [Departamento de] Loreto, Rio Yavari Mirim, Q[uebrada]. Esperanza 200 m. alt.”

There is a fossil record from the Miocene of La Venta, Colombia; it was first considered a different species, 1. robusta, but later synonymized with 1. lavali . Thyroptera lavali is the sister taxon to T. devivoi . Monotypic.

Distribution. Known from scattered localities in E Venezuela, E Ecuador (Orellana Province), Amazon Basin of Brazil (Para and Tocantins states), and E Peru (Loreto, Ucayali, Cusco, and Madre de Dios departments).

Descriptive notes. Head-body ¢.48-56 mm, tail 30-31 mm, ear 8-12 mm, hindfoot 4-7 mm, forearm 37-3-41 mm; weight 4-6 g. Greatest length of skull 15-4-15-8 mm, condylo-incisive length 14-6-15 mm, rostral length averages 6-5 mm, zygomatic breadth 8-8-1 mm, and maxillary tooth row length 6-2—-6-5 mm. LaVal’s Disk-winged Bat is a large species of Thyroptera . Dorsal pelage is cinnamon-brown, woolly, and short. Ventralfuris bicolored from brown to yellowish, with dark brown at base and medium brown at tips. Tail projects beyond interfemoral membrane. There are skin projections or lappets on each calcar. These lappets range from zero to three. Forearm is hairy. Wrist suction disks are oblong in shape and 5 x 4 mm.

Habitat. Primary forest swamps near streams and rivers in lowlands up to elevations of 700 m. LaVal’s Disk-winged Bats have been recorded in disturbed area such as oil-well sites and tourist lodges. One specimen was collected in an area with a few large trees near a small creek; it might have roosted in a palm frond. Two additional specimens were found in mixed upland forest of arborescent palm / Iriartea deltoidea and Miconia sp. (both Arecaceae ) with rolling hills that had little understory shrubs. In eastern Ecuador, LaVal’s Disk-winged Bats occur in terra firma forest adjacent to a Mauritia (Arecaceae) palm swamp.

Food and Feeding. [.aVal’s Disk-winged Batis insectivorous.

Breeding. One female LaVal’s Disk-winged Bat in north-eastern Ecuador was pregnant in October. Females from Ecuador were lactating in January-February. A female in south-eastern Peru was carrying a newborn in September. In the Amazon Basin, parturition occurs at the beginning of the wet season.

Activity patterns. One LaVal’s Disk-winged Bat roosted in palm.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Bat fly ectoparasites ( Nycteribiidae ) and mites ( Macronyssidae ) have been collected on LaVal’s Disk-winged Bats.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. The few known populations of LaVal’s Disk-winged Bats are fragmented, and preferred habitat is declining. Knowledge of the current distribution of LaVal’s Disk-winged Batis limited, but more records are expected in the future. Nevertheless, it could be very rare because there were less than ten specimens by of 2004.

Bibliography. Czaplewski (1997), Garcia et al. (2019), Gregorin et al. (2006), Pine (1993), Reid et al. (2000), Rodriguez-Posada et al. (2017), Solari & Velazco (2016), Solari et al. (2004), Velazco et al. (2014).

Figures

Plate 33 Species Accounts

Distribution. Known from scattered localities in E Venezuela , E Ecuador (Orellana Province), Amazon Basin of Brazil (Para and Tocantins states), and E Peru (Loreto, Ucayali, Cusco, and Madre de Dios departments).