Neoromicia tenuipinnis (Peters, 1872)

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 : 327-328

Neoromicia tenuipinnis (Peters, 1872)

White-winged serotine

Vesperus tenuipinnis Peters, 1872: 263 ; ‘Guinea’.

New material

HZM.7.40170 , ♀, HZM.8.40171 , ♀, 29 July, 2012, Airport Road , Lekoumou, 2°45.724’S, 13°34.953’E. Previous records are included in Appendix I ; the known distribution corresponds to localities 24 and 29 in Fig. 1 . There is no detailed information on abundance but it appears to be relatively common ( Happold and Happold, 2013).

Description

A very small species with a forearm length of 29.6, 30.4 mm ( Table 2 ). This species is characterised by its white wings and interfemoral membrane (above and below); the forearms and the tail

itself are contrastingly brown. The dorsal pelage has dark bases to the hairs, with paler tips. The hairs on the underside also have dark roots but the tips are distinctly paler, far more pronounced than in the dorsal pelage. The ears are virtually naked and pale, almost white, above and below. Each tragus is white, with a straight anterior border and a smoothly rounded posterior one, which has a notch near the base ( Fig. 8F ). The skull is short (GTL= 12.83, 12.88 mm; Table 3 ) with an almost straight profile ( Fig. 12C ). The first upper incisor (I 2) is unicuspid but with a slight notch beneath the tip; the second incisor (I 4) is about half the height of I 2 and is also unicuspid ( Fig. 12C ). There is no small upper premolar (P 2); the second upper premolar (P 4) is between half and two-thirds the crown area of the first upper molar (M 1) ( Fig. 12C ). The first lower premolar (P 2) is also between half and two-thirds the crown area of the second (P 4) and about half the height. With only two female specimens available, it was not possible to examine the baculum.

Taxonomic notes

Allen (1917) reported that some specimens from the Democratic Republic of Congo had pale ears and pale tips to the hairs on the dorsal surface and others had dark ears, dark dorsal pelage and averaged smaller. He referred the former to Eptesicus tenuipinnis (= Neoromicia tenuipinnis ) and the latter to a new taxon E. ater Allen, 1917 . However, following Sanborn (1950), the taxon ater was included as a synonym of N. tenuipinnis , a view still followed today ( Simmons, 2005; Happold and Happold, 2013). The two recent specimens from Congo described above have pale ears and dark dorsal pelage with pale tips, corresponding to the original description of N. tenuipinnis (Peters, 1872) . This is in contrast to a specimen from Liberia, which is shown in Monadjem et al. (2010: figure 284). This individual has markedly dark ears and Monadjem et al. (2010: 478) describe tenuipinnis as having ears, which are ‘dark brown’. Either ear colour is polymorphic or perhaps Allen (1917) is correct and there are two cryptic species present in Africa. Happold and Happold (2013) suggest the need for a taxonomic revision of the species.

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. 8. Right tragus of (A): Glauconycteris alboguttata, HZM.1.40172, ♀; (B): G. beatrix, HZM.1.40181, ♀; (C): Hypsugo crassulus, HZM.1.40190, ♂; (D): Neoromicia brunnea, HZM.1.40191, ♂; (E): N. nana, HZM.321.40186, ♂; (F): N. tenuipinnis, HZM.7.40170, ♀; (G): Pipistrellus nanulus, HZM.1.40189, ♂; (H): Mimetillus moloneyi, HZM.10.40177, ♂; (I): Miniopterus inflatus, HZM.19.40182, ♂. Scale = 2 mm

FIG. 12. Skulls of three Neoromicia, including lateral view of right upper incisors, and occlusal view of left mandibular dentition [left] and left maxillary dentition [right] of (A): N. brunnea, HZM.1.40191, ♂; (B): N. nana, HZM.321.40186, ♂ and (C) N. tenuipinnis, HZM.7.40170, ♀. Scales for skulls and occlusal views of toothrows (left and right) = 2 mm; scale for upper incisors (centre) = 1 mm