Dobsonia peronii, E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Pteropodidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 16-162 : 109

84.

Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat

Dobsonia peronii

French: Roussette de Péron / German: Westlicher Nacktriickenflughund / Spanish: Dobsonia de Péron

Taxonomy. Cephalotes peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810 ,

“L’ile de Timor,” Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia.

"Two subspecies are recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

D. p. peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810 — E Lesser Sundas (Sumba, Sawu, Roti, Timor, Wetar, Sermata, and Babar Is).

D. p. grandis Bergmans, 1978 — W Lesser Sundas (Bali, Nusa Penida, Lombok, Sumbawa, Moyo, Sangeang, Komodo, Rinca, Flores, Lembata, Pantar, and AlorIs).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 141-158 mm, tail 29-32 mm, ear 24-26 mm, hindfoot 24-30 mm, forearm 114-121 mm; weight 162-235 g. Adult male Western Nakedbacked Fruit Bats have back of neck olive, shading to dark olive-bistre on head; rump is brownish olive; flanks are drab, mixed with tawny-olive; breast and belly are suffused with light golden tawny-olive. Females are drab dark brown on head, back, and rump; shoulders are lighter brown; and back and rump are very sparsely haired, appearing almost naked on back. Female ventral fur from upper chest extending down each side is light grayish olive, mixed with drab brown hairs having buffy tips; central chest and abdomen are drab dark brown, tipped with honey-yellow. Young males are lighter than adult females, with shoulders being brown and upper chest and sides light brown. Adult males have very strong musky odor. Index claw (second digit of wing) is absent. There is well-marked anterointernal basal ledge on upper and lower third premolars, a posterior basal ledge in second upper and lower premolars as on third lower premolar. Median surface ridge is present on M' and M, and often also on P° and M,. Anterointernal corner of M' is sharply marked offas a distinct ledge; however, there is no well-marked anterointernal basal ledge in M. Longitudinal ridges of cheekteeth are simple.

Habitat. Monsoon forests, dry woodland savannas, and moist tropical forests from sea level up to elevations of ¢. 880 m.

Food and Feeding. Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats eat fruits of Borassus (Arecaceae) , Muntingia (Muntingiaceae) , and Ficus (Moraceae) . They commonly feed from the same trees visited by Geoffroy’s Rousettes ( Rousettus amplexicaudatus ) and Wallacean Gray Flying Foxes ( Pteropus griseus ).

Breeding. Two Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats captured in October on Lombok were lactating and had left and right uterine horns slightly swollen. Five adult males on Timor were in breeding condition in March-April, and a female was pregnant in March, with near-term fetus weighing 48 g.

Activity patterns. Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats typically emerge ¢.90 minutes after dark and forage throughout the night. Groups roost in limestone caves, rock fissures, crevices, hollow trees, and tree canopies and under rock ledges. Occasionally, individuals roost beneath large fan-shaped fronds of Corypha and Borassus palms ( Arecaceae ).

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Up to 300 adults and young Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats can occupy dimly lit large cave chambers, sometimes jointly occupied with Black-bearded Tomb Bats (7aphozous melanopogon ). Smaller groups of young might roost in chambers of a cave not occupied by adults.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat has a large distribution and is abundant, presumably with stable population. Although hunted, often by smoking them out of caves, consumption is restricted to local indigenous people. The Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat seems to be tolerant of disturbance from human activities. Conservation awareness programs to avoid disturbance at roost caves would be beneficial.

Bibliography. Bergmans (1978b), Goodwin (1979), Hutson, Suyanto & Helgen (2008), Kitchener, Boeadi et al. (1990).

Figures

73. Lesser Long-tongued Blossom Bat (Macroglossus minimus), 74. Greater Long-tongued Blossom Bat (Macroglossus sobrinus), 75. Southern Blossom Bat (Syconycteris australis), 76. Halmaheran Blossom Bat (Syconycteris carolinae), 77. Moss-forest Blossom Bat (Syconycteris hobbit), 78. Manado Fruit Bat (Boneia bidens), 79. Sulawesi Harpy Fruit Bat (Harpyionycteris celebensis), 80. Philippine Harpy Fruit Bat (Harpyionycteris whitehead), 81. Bulmer’s Fruit Bat (Aproteles bulmerae), 82. Lesser Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia minor), 83. Moluccan Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia moluccensis), 84. Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia peronu), 86. Panniet Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia pannietensis), 87. Philippine Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia chapmani), 88. Biak Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia emersa), 89. Sulawesi Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia exoleta), 90. Greenish Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia viridis), 91. Beaufort’s Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia beauforti), 92. Halmahera Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia crenulata), 93. Solomons Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia inermis), 94. New Britain Naked-backed Fruit Bat (Dobsonia praedatrix)

Subspecies and Distribution. D. p. peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810 — E Lesser Sundas (Sumba, Sawu, Roti, Timor, Wetar, Sermata, and Babar Is). D. p. grandis Bergmans, 1978 — W Lesser Sundas (Bali, Nusa Penida, Lombok, Sumbawa, Moyo, Sangeang, Komodo, Rinca, Flores , Lembata, Pantar, and AlorIs).