Lonchophylla dekeyseri, Taddei, Vizotto & Sazima, 1983

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Phyllostomidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 444-583 : 531

97.

Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat

Lonchophylla dekeyseri

French: Lonchophylle de Dekeyser / German: Dekeyser-Nektarfledermaus / Spanish: Loncéfilo de Dekeyser

Taxonomy. Lonchophylla dekeyser: Taddei, Vizotto & Sazima, 1983 ,

“Parque Nacional de Brasilia, Distrito Federal, Brasil, cerca de 8 km ao Norte do centro da cidade (approx. 15°48’S, 47°47'W, ca. 1100 m de alt.).”

Reports from Bolivian savannas and from caatinga in north-eastern Brazil, such as in the state of Paraiba, have proven to be controversial based on revisionary work on Lonchophylla by R. Moratelli and D. Dias in 2015, which contained the description of L. inexpectata . Identity of the historical record from Piaui State, a paratype collected in an ecotone, has also been questioned, but it is kept here conservatively until further evidence becomes available. Monotypic.

Distribution. C & S Brazil, cerrado areas in states of Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Goias, Distrito Federal, Minas Gerais, and Mato Grosso do Sul and transitional area of cerrado/caatinga in Piaui.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 48-63 mm, tail 6-8 mm, ear 12-16 mm, hindfoot 10-11 mm, forearm 33-9-37-7 mm; weight 9-8-11-5 g. Greatest length of skull is less than 22-8 mm. Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat is small. Pelage overall ranges from pale brown to yellowish, cinnamon-beige, and dorsum is darker than venter. Wing membranes are homogeneously brown. Snout is elongated, vibrissae are well developed in upper and lower lips, and there is a groove in lower chin bordered by small wart-like papillae. Skull is wider compared with similarly sized species of Lonchophylla but generally shorter. Upper inner incisors are spatulated and generally in contact at tips but not at bases,as is typical for species of Lonchophylla . Dentition is reduced. There is a longitudinal groove in anterior surface of C', and P? is robust, with small to moderately developed inner lobe. Metastyle of M' is reduced or completely absent, parastyle of M? is well developed and rounded, and its metastyle is reduced or absent. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 28 and FN = 50.

Habitat. Dry savanna-like cerrado environments.

Food and Feeding. In the Cafuringa Environmental Protection Area, Federal District, Brazil, in April-December (dry season), Dekeyser’s Nectar Bats visited species of Pseudobombax (Malvaceae) , Bauhinia (Fabaceae) , Lafoensia (Lythraceae) , Ruellia (Acanthaceae) , and Inga (Fabaceae) . Pollen,insects, and seeds were found in fecal samples, and more than 70% of pollen samples were from species of Bauhinia , and most insect fragments were Coleoptera . There are reports of individuals visiting and feeding on flowers of Bauhinia rufa in Serra do Cip6 National Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Breeding. In a cave at Cafuringa Environmental Protection Area with an estimated population of 150 individuals, sex ratio was 1:3-6 (males/females). Pregnant females were found in March—June in caves in karst areas in several municipalities in the Federal District, Brazil.

Activity patterns. In the cave at the Cafuringa Environmental Protection Area, peak emergence of Dekeyser’s Nectar Bats was concentrated in the first two hours after dark. Individuals returned during last two hours of the night in rainy seasons and during two peaks in dry seasons: around midnight and last two hours of the night. Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat uses caves (associated with calcareous outcrops), tunnels, and crevasses as day roosts.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. More than a hundred Dekeyser’s Nectar Bats were captured in three caves in a karst area in the Federal District of Brazil; they occupied the first chambers of the caves, generally spacious, and shared them with Pallas’s Long-tongued Bat ( Glossophaga soricina ). Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat also shared these caves with nine other bat species, always hanging by one or two feet on cave ceilings, and individuals maintained a distance from each other, without any body contact. Two Dekeyser’s Nectar Bats in a matrix of cerrado and pasture in central Brazil were radio-tracked for three consecutive nights, resulting in 69 locations and an average home range of 640 ha. Home ranges were about 50:50 cerrado and pasture, and individuals had two peaks of activity interspersed by a period of lower activity between 21:00 h and 04:00 h.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List. Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat is threatened by mining, fragmentation of cerrado, and human impact in caves.

Bibliography. Aguiar et al. (2014), Almeida, B. et al. (2016), Bredt & Uieda (1996), Bredt et al. (1999), Coelho & Marinho-Filho (2002), Cunha et al. (2011), Esbérard et al. (2005), Gongalves & Gregorin (2004), Gregorin, Carmignotto & Percequillo (2008), Gregorin, Goncalves et al. (2011), Moratelli & Dias (2015), Pinto et al. (2010), Rodrigues et al. (2002), Sazima et al. (1989), Silva et al. (2011), Taddei et al. (1983), Woodman & Timm (2006).

Figures

83. Cadena’s Nectar Bat (Hsunycteris cadenai), 84. Dashe’s Nectar Bat (Hsunycteris dashe), 85. Patton’s Nectar Bat (Hsunycteris pationi), 86. Thomas's Nectar Bat (Hsunycteris thomasi), 87. Chestnut Long-tongued Bat (Lionycteris spurrelli), 88. Brazilian Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla mordax), 89. Chocoan Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla chocoana), 90. Goldman's Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla concava), 91. Pacific Forest Long-tongued Bat (Lonchophylla fornicata), 92. Orces’s Long-tongued Bat (Lonchophylla orcesi), 93. Western Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla hesperia), 94. Eastern Cordilleran Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla orienticollina), 95. Handley’s Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla handleyi), 96. Orange Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla robusta), 97. Dekeyser’s Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla dekeyseri), 98. Pale-bellied Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla inexpectata), 99. Bokermann’s Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla bokermanni), 100. Peracchi’s Nectar Bat (Lonchophylla peracchii), 101. Long-snouted Bat (Platalina genovensium), 102. Vieira’s Long-tongued Bat (Xeronycleris vierrai)

Distribution. C & S Brazil , cerrado areas in states of Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Goias, Distrito Federal, Minas Gerais, and Mato Grosso do Sul and transitional area of cerrado/caatinga in Piaui.