Miniopterus cf. minor Peters, 1867

Mongombe, Aaron Manga, Fils, Eric Moise Bakwo & Tamesse, Joseph Lebel, 2020, Annotated checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) of Mount Cameroon, southwestern Cameroon, Zoosystema 42 (24), pp. 483-514 : 506

Miniopterus cf. minor Peters, 1867

( Fig. 18 , Table 3 )

Miniopterus minor Peters, 1867: 870.

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — 11 specimens (see Table 1 ).

ORIGINAL DATA. — A total of 11 individuals attributed to this species were obtained from a cave at an altitude of 1400 m a.s.l. during our field surveys.

DIAGNOSIS. — The species has a forearm length of 41.0- 44.9 mm ( Table 3 ), and possesses features typical of the genus in having a dome-shaped forehead ( Fig. 18 ), and a second phalanx of third finger which is greatly elongated and folds back completely on metacarpals and first phalanx when at rest. The pelage is brownish dorsally and a paler brown ventrally. The interfemoral and wing membranes are brownish. The skull is characteristically large with a greatest length of 13.9-16.5 mm ( Table 3 ), other external measurements are presented in Table 3.

REMARK. — The genus Miniopterus has a number of cryptic species with two listed to occur in Cameroon by Happold & Happold (2013): Miniopterus schreibersii (Kuhl, 1817) and Miniopterus fraterculus Thomas and Schwann, 1906 . But Miniopterus schreibersii schreibersii is restricted to northern Africa ( ACR 2018), while Miniopterus fraterculus in endemic to South Africa and Swaziland ( Monadjem et al. 2010). Miniopterus minor Peters, 1867 has been recorded in isolated localities of central and eastern Africa ( ACR 2018). Therefore further molecular investigations are required to clarify the taxonomic status of the species present in Cameroon.

Figures

FIG. 18. — Miniopterus cf.minor Peters,1867.Photo:© Aaron Manga Mongombe.