Jamaican greater funnel-eared bat
| Jamaican greater funnel-eared bat | |
|---|---|
 | |
| The Mexican funnel-eared bat, an almost identical species | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Chiroptera |
| Family: | Natalidae |
| Genus: | Natalus |
| Species: | N. jamaicensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Natalus jamaicensis (Goodwin, 1959) | |
The Jamaican greater funnel-eared bat (Natalus jamaicensis) is a species of funnel-eared bat found in Jamaica. It was first described as Natalus Major jamaicensis, later as a subspecies of Natalus stramineus, and now as its own species, similar to many species of the genus Natalus. It lives solely in St. Clair Cave in Jamaica and feeds on insects.
Taxonomy
Natalus was first reported as existing in Jamaica in 1951 by Koopman and Williams based on a partial mandible collected by H. E. Anthony during 1919–1920. They referred to the species as N. Major.[2] The species was first described scientifically in 1959 by George Gilbert Goodwin as Natulus major jamaicensis. The type was the skin and skull of a male collected from St. Clair Cave, St. Catherine Parish, Jamaica by C.B. Lewis on March 5, 1954.[3]
Description
Goodwin described N. major jamaicanis as being distinguishable from the "typical" N. Major by its "higher, shorter, and more globular braincase, more slender, longer, and flatter rostrum, the sides of which are concave instead of inflated and convex as in major, and by the noticeably narrower inter-orbital space".[3]
Distribution and habitat
The Jamaican greater funnel-eared bat only is found in St. Clair Cave in Jamaica.[4]
Conservation status
The IUCN has categorized the species as Critically Endangered because "its extent of occurrence is less than 100 km², all individuals are in a single location, and there is continuing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat".[1]
References
- 1 2 Velazco, P.; Turvey, S (2008). "Natalus jamaicensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
- ↑ Tejedor, Tavares and Silva-Taboada 2005, p. 2.
- 1 2 Goodwin, George (22 December 1959). "Bats of the Subgenus Natalus" (PDF). American Museum Novitates (The American Museum of Natural History) (1977). Retrieved 18 July 2013.
- ↑ Tejedor, Tavares and Silva-Taboada 2005, p. 17.
Cited texts
- Tejedor, Adrian; Tavares, Valeria da C.; Silva-Taboada, Gilberto (October 27, 2005). "A Revision of Extant Greater Antillean Bats of the Genus Natalus" (PDF). American Museum Novitates (New York, NY: American Museum of Natural History) (3493).