Lesser Long-eared Bat
Encyclopedia
The Lesser Long-Eared Bat (Nyctophilus
geoffroyi) is a species of vesper bat
in the Vespertilionidae family.
It is found only in Australia
.
The lesser long eared bat falls into the category of a microbat, and more specifically, a vesper bat. These bats are usually nocturnal, living in dark caves, hollows, old trees, ceilings and hollow walls, and therefore they use echolocation systems to hunt.
There is not much evidence in the fossil record about the evolution of lesser long eared bats as bat skeletons are small and delicate, meaning they don’t fossilise very well.
It has been suggested that microbats such as the lesser long eared bat evolved independently from megabats, and don’t have a common ancestor. Their wing structure and ability to fly is an analogous feature, as they have both evolved the structure independently due to a similar habitat but not because they are closely related. There are not many other similar features between the bats-microbats mostly eat insect
s, are nocturnal, have poorly developed eyes and large ears, whereas megabats mostly eat fruit and nectar, aren’t nocturnal and have well-developed eyes. Megabats have many characteristics that suggest they are sister taxa to primates but microbats, including lesser long eared bats are more separated on the evolutionary tree. There is also some genetic evidence to support this.
Bat wings and butterfly wings are also analogous structures, as they are used for a similar purpose due to their habitat, but have developed from different origins. However, the forelimb structure of bat wings and bird wings are homologous features. This is because, even though one is a mammal and one is from the class ‘aves’, they share a common ancestor. This is also the same for the bone structure in the arms of humans and the flippers of whale
s even though they have different purposes.
Nyctophilus
Nyctophilus is a genus of bats within the Vespertilionidae or "Vesper bats" family. Species within this genus are:*Northern Long-eared Bat Nyctophilus arnhemensis*Eastern Long-eared Bat Nyctophilus bifax*Nyctophilus corbeni...
geoffroyi) is a species of vesper bat
Vesper bat
Vesper bats , also known as Evening bats or Common bats, are the largest and best-known family of bats. They belong to the suborder Microchiroptera . There are over three hundred species distributed all over the world, on every continent except Antarctica...
in the Vespertilionidae family.
It is found only in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Classification
The lesser long eared bat falls into the category of a microbat, and more specifically, a vesper bat. These bats are usually nocturnal, living in dark caves, hollows, old trees, ceilings and hollow walls, and therefore they use echolocation systems to hunt.
Fossil record
There is not much evidence in the fossil record about the evolution of lesser long eared bats as bat skeletons are small and delicate, meaning they don’t fossilise very well.
Relationship with other bats & analogous features
It has been suggested that microbats such as the lesser long eared bat evolved independently from megabats, and don’t have a common ancestor. Their wing structure and ability to fly is an analogous feature, as they have both evolved the structure independently due to a similar habitat but not because they are closely related. There are not many other similar features between the bats-microbats mostly eat insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s, are nocturnal, have poorly developed eyes and large ears, whereas megabats mostly eat fruit and nectar, aren’t nocturnal and have well-developed eyes. Megabats have many characteristics that suggest they are sister taxa to primates but microbats, including lesser long eared bats are more separated on the evolutionary tree. There is also some genetic evidence to support this.
Homologous features
Bat wings and butterfly wings are also analogous structures, as they are used for a similar purpose due to their habitat, but have developed from different origins. However, the forelimb structure of bat wings and bird wings are homologous features. This is because, even though one is a mammal and one is from the class ‘aves’, they share a common ancestor. This is also the same for the bone structure in the arms of humans and the flippers of whale
Whale
Whale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
s even though they have different purposes.