Mexican dog-faced bat
| Mexican dog-faced bat | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Chiroptera |
| Family: | Molossidae |
| Genus: | Cynomops |
| Species: | C. mexicanus |
| Binomial name | |
| Cynomops mexicanus Jones & Genoways, 1967 | |
 | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The Mexican dog-faced bat (Cynomops mexicanus) is a bat species of the family Molossidae from Central America.[2] It is found from Nayarit in Mexico to Costa Rica at elevations up to 1500 m.[1] It was formerly considered a subspecies of C. greenhalli.[2] It roosts in deciduous and evergreen forest, and is usually found near small bodies of water.[1]
Taxonomy and etymology
[edit]| Phylogeny of Cynomops[3] |
It was described as a subspecies of Greenhall's dog-faced bat (Cynomops greenhalli) in 1967 by Jones and Genoways. At the time, Greenhall's dog-faced bat was in the genus Molossops, so the Mexican dog-faced bat initially had the trinomen Molossops greenhalli mexicanus.[4] When Cynomops was recognized as a valid genus rather than a subgenus of Molossops, Greenhall's dog-faced bat became part of the new genus. However, it wasn't until 2002 that the Mexican dog-faced bat was promoted to full species status. It is the most basal member of Cynomops.[3] Its species name "mexicanus" is Latin meaning "from Mexico."
Description
[edit]It is a relatively large free-tailed bat. Total length is 90–107 mm (3.5–4.2 in); forearms and tails are 34.6–36.8 mm (1.36–1.45 in) and 28–33 mm (1.1–1.3 in) long, respectively. It weighs 16.2–16.5 g (0.57–0.58 oz).[4] Fur color is dark brown or reddish brown overall, but lighter on the stomach.
Biology
[edit]It is nocturnal, and roosts in sheltered places during the day such as inside hollow trees.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Rodriguez, B.; Miller, B. (2015). "Cynomops mexicanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2015: e.T136611A21987867. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T136611A21987867.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ a b Simmons, N.B. (2005). "Order Chiroptera". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 437. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
- ^ a b Peters, Sandra L; Lim, Burton K; Engstrom, Mark D (2002). "Systematics of Dog-Faced Bats (Cynomops) Based on Molecular and Morphometric Data". Journal of Mammalogy. 83 (4): 1097. doi:10.1644/1545-1542(2002)083<1097:SODFBC>2.0.CO;2.
- ^ a b c Jones Jr, J. K.; Genoways, H. H. (1967). "A new subspecies of the free-tailed bat, Molossops greenhalli, from western Mexico (Mammalia: Chiroptera)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 80: 207–210.