Nyctimene raboriPhilippine tube-nosed fruit bat
Geographic Range
Nyctimene rabori is found on Negros, Cebu, and Sibuyan Islands, in the central Philippines. (Heaney and et. al., 2002)
- Other Geographic Terms
- island endemic
Habitat
Nyctimene rabori is found only in tropical, forested areas, and probably mainly utilizes the high canopy.
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- rainforest
Physical Description
The striking physical features from which this animal gets its name are its tubular nostrils, which are separate and are about 6mm long. Body coloration is sexually dimorphic, with females being a light golden brown or buff color, and males a darker, more chocolatey brown. Both sexes have a dark stripe extending from the shoulders to the tail and light spots on their ears and wings. The bats measure about 142 mm in total length, with tail 25 mm, ear 20 mm and forearm 76 mm.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Reproduction
Reproduction is known to occur in May and June, based on a small number of specimens that were collected while lactating (females) or in breeding condition (males). The duration of the breeding season and other details of the species' reproductive behavior have not yet been studied by researchers.
- Key Reproductive Features
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
Behavior
The behavioral repertoire of this species has not yet been described.
- Key Behaviors
- motile
Communication and Perception
Food Habits
Little is yet known about the habits of this recently (1984) described species, but, like other Nyctimene species, it probably eats a variety of local fruits and perhaps some insects as well.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Tube-nosed fruit bats are dispersers of fruit tree seeds, and may help control pest insect populations.
Conservation Status
Human activities have resulted in the loss of much of this tube-nosed fruit bat's forest habitat. If the forest fragments where it still lives are adequately protected, the species may survive.
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- IUCN Red List
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Endangered
More information
Other Comments
The discovery of N. rabori is of particular interest because, like three other genera of fruit bats, Nyctimene occurs on Celebes and in the Philippines but not on Borneo. This group therefore transcends Wallace's line, the zoogeographic boundary of the Oriental faunal region that follows the edge of Asia's continental shelf. This pattern of species distributions is very different from the pattern for other mammals, and is probably due to the vastly increased dispersal abilities of flying mammals.
Contributors
Deborah Ciszek (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
Glossary
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- island endemic
-
animals that live only on an island or set of islands.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- oriental
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found in the oriental region of the world. In other words, India and southeast Asia.
- rainforest
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rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
References
Heaney, L.R. and R.L. Peterson. 1984. "A New Species of Tube-Nosed Fruit Bat (Nyctimene) from Negros Island, Philippines (Mammalia: Pteropodidae)." Occasional Papers of the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, No. 708.
Nowak, R.M. 1994. Walker's Bats of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
Heaney, L., et. al.. 2002. "Nyctimene rabori" (On-line). A Synopsis of the Mammalian Fauna of the Phillippine Islands. Accessed August 18, 2004 at http://www.fmnh.org/philippine_mammals/Nyctimene_rabori.htm.