Rhinolophus schnitzleri, Wu Yi & Thong, 2011

Burgin, Connor, 2019, Rhinolophidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 280-332 : 302

46 . Schnitzler’s Horseshoe Bat

Rhinolophus schnitzleri

French: Rhinolophe de Schnitzler / German: Schnitzler-Hufeisennase / Spanish: Herradura de Schnitzler

Taxonomy. Rhinolophus schnitzleri Wu Yi & Thong, 2011 ,

“ Xiao-dong Cave, Gengjiaying Commune, Yi-liang County, Kunming City , Yunnan province, China, 25°02’N, 103°14’E, 1550 meters above sea level (m a. s.l.).”

Rhinolophus schnitzleri is in the macrotis species group and seems to be closely related to. rex . Because distribution and almost all external and craniodental characteristics of. schnitzleri are intermediate between. rex and. paradoxolophus (recently regarded as conspecific with. rex), the separate specific status of. schnitzleri is highly questionable. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known only from type locality in E Yunnan, SE China.

Descriptive notes. Tail 25-4-26- 9 mm, ear 30-1-32- 6 mm, hindfoot 9-9-10- 4 mm, forearm 54-3—57- 7 mm. Dorsal pelage is light brown; venter is more chestnut, with gray undertones. There is no known orange morph. Males lack axillary tufts. Ears are very large. Noseleaf has very short subtriangular lancet, with broadly rounded tip, being nearly concealed by fur; connecting process is low and convex and slopes from base of lancet to sella; sella is very long, wide, and tongue-shaped, its tip is broadly blunt, it is narrowest at base, and there is longitudinal median depression extending almost to top of sella; intemarial cup is very broad and extends laterally over much of horseshoe and covers nostrils; and horseshoe is very wide, covers muzzle, and has no lateral leaflets and very deep median emargination. There are three medial grooves on lower lip. Wings and uropatagium are uniformly brown. Baculum is large, with deep hollow in base and slighdy expanded margins; proximal margin of base is almost horizontal in lateral view; dorsal and ventral notches on proximal margins are relatively wide and equal in depth; dorsal knob is indistinct; shaft is cylindrically swollen and bends slightly dorsally; and tip is tapered uniformly and expanded, having an oval structure with median depression that slopes backward. Skull is large, with thin zygomatic arches (zygomatic width is much narrower than mastoid width); anterior median swellings are well developed; lateral swellings are narrow, elongated, and less prominent; posterior median swellings are less developed; sagittal crest is very low; and supraorbital ridges are very prominent. P2 is small and in tooth row, separating C1 and P4, and P3 is tiny and in tooth row, separating P2 and P4.

Habitat. Collected only by cultivated areas at an elevation of 1550 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Schnitzler’s Horseshoe Bats are thought to roost in caves. Call shape is FM/CF/FM, and peak call frequencies have been reported at 23-9 kHz and 24-1 kHz.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCNed List. Schnitzler’s Horseshoe Bat is currently only known from the holotype collected in 2008 and two specimens collected around the type locality in 2014. This locality was surrounded by cultivated land, indicating that Schnitzler’s Horseshoe Bat might be affected by agricultural practices and habitat loss. Additional research on its ecology, distribution, and threats is needed.

Bibliography. WuYi & ThongVu Dinh (2011),Yu Wenhua et al. (2016).

Figures

On following pages: 27. African Forest Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus silvestris); 28. Upland Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hillorum); 29. Sakeji Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus sakejiensis); 30. Bokhara Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus bocharicus); 31. Greater Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum); 32. Geoffrey's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus clivosus); 33. Greater Japanese Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus nippon); 34. Horacek's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus horaceki); 35. Maclaud's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus maclaudi); 36. Ziama Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ziama); 37. Hill's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hilli); 38. Kahuzi Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus kahuzi); 39. Willard's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus willardi); 40. Ruwenzori Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ruwenzorii); 41. Chinese Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus xinanzhongguoensis); 42. Big-eared Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus macrotis); 43. Osgood's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus osgoodi); 44. Allen's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus episcopus); 45. Thai Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus siamensis); 46, Schnitzler's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus schnitzten); M. King Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus rex); 48. Marshall’s Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus marshalli).

Distribution. Known only from type locality in E Yunnan, SE China .