Rhinolophus alcyone Temminck, 1852

Bates, Paul J. J., Cameron, Kenneth, Pearch, Malcolm J. & Hayes, Benjamin, 2013, A review of the bats (Chiroptera) of the Republic of Congo, including eight species new to the country, Acta Chiropterologica 15 (2), pp. 313-340 : 317-318

Rhinolophus alcyone Temminck, 1852

Halcyon horseshoe bat

Rhinolophus alcyone Temminck 1852: 80 ; Boutry River, Gold Coast ( Ghana).

New material

HZM.15.40192 , ♀, and HZM.16.40193 , ♂, 7 August, 2012, Forest Corridor , Lekoumou, 3°25.578’S, 12°45.670’E. Previous records are included in Appendix I ; the known distribution in Congo corresponds to localities 5, 6, 9, 10, and 29 in Fig. 1 . According to Happold and Happold (2013), its abundance in Africa is uncertain; it is rarely collected.

Description

A medium horseshoe bat with a forearm length of 52.9, 53.0 mm ( Table 2 ). The first phalanx of the third finger is relatively short (16.3, 17.9 mm); the second phalanx (27.0, 27.8 mm) is relatively long; the third metacarpal is 38.6, 38.7 mm in length. In the noseleaf, the horseshoe is broad with virtually no indication of a supplementary leaflet; the lancet has a rounded tip and is essentially straight-sided in one specimen and with slightly concave margins in the other. The sella has a shallow median constriction and a widely rounded anterior border; the superior connecting process is bluntly pointed ( Fig. 4 ). There is one clearly defined groove in the lower lip. The skull is robust with a skull length (SL) of 22.82, 23.35 mm ( Table 3 ). The anterior median compartments of the rostrum are well developed; the frontal depression is shallow. The canines are strong; the first upper premolar (P 2) is relatively well developed and lies within the toothrow. The second lower premolar (P 3) is small, but not minute, and also lies within the toothrow. The baculum is 3.3 mm in length and very distinctive ( Fig. 4 ). It has a thin, cylindrical shaft with a slightly expanded tip; the base is slightly bilobate and broad, when viewed laterally, and is deeply hollowed out, when viewed from below.

Taxonomic notes

Currently there are no recognised subspecies ( Csorba et al., 2003; Happold and Happold, 2013).

Figures

APPENDIX I A list of the forty-three bat species currently recorded from Congo, including citations in the literature and locality data. CS (Conservation status – NT: Near threatened; DD: Data deficient; LC: Least concern) is based on IUCN Red List of Threatened Species retrieved on 8 May, 2013. Two species listed here have not been assessed (na) by IUCN for their conservation status but rather have been included within other taxa: Triaenops afer in Triaenops persicus and Chaerephon leucogaster in Tadarida pumila. Superscripts associated with localities in column 4 refer to the superscripts for the literature cited in column 3

FIG. 1. Localities from which bats have been collected in Congo based on the literature and current study (see Appendix I). Size of red dot is proportional in area to the number of species collected from that locality. Habitat types are based on Bergmans (1979). Localities (listed in Appendix III): (1) Pointe-Noire; (2) Hinda; (3) Loandjili; (4) Tchissanga; (5) Koubotchi; (6) Ménengué; (7) N’Gongo; (8) Dinguembo; (9) Béna; (10) Goumina; (11) Sounda, Gorge of; (12) Makaba; (13) Bouloungi; (14) Dimonika; (15) Mayombe; (16) Bamba, col du Mont; (17a–c) Loudima-Kimongo (includes Cave of Doumboula, Cave of Loudima, and Cave of Viaduc); (18a,b) Kila N’Tari and Mouyondzi; (19a–h) Bangou Massif (includes Bouaboumpono, Cave of Kimanika, Cave of Matouridi, Meya / Cave of Meya-Nzouari, Cave of Meya-Nwadi, Mountembessa, Cave of Mpasa, and Cave of Mpoka); (20) Voka; (21) Kinkala; (22) Ile M’Bamou; (23) La Région du Pool (Stanley Pool); (24) Brazzaville; (25) Grand Bois; (26) Sibiti; (27) Komono; (28) Divenié; (29) Lekoumou; (30) Lesio-Louna Reserve; (31) Ngabé; (32) Plateau Konkouya; (33) Lékana; (34) Djambala; (35) Ewo; (36) Konda; (37) Ubangi (Oubangi); (38) Mouth of Ubangi River; (39) Kellé; (40) Odzala/Odzala National Park; (41) Kango; (42) Impfondo; (43) Epena. Scale as marked. C.A.R.= Central African Republic; D.R. Congo = Democratic Republic of Congo

FIG. 4. Rhinolophus alcyone, HZM.16.40193, (A): superior connecting process; (B): sella; (C): baculum (dorsal view — left and lateral view — right). Scale for A and B = 2 mm; scale for C = 1 mm