Lesser Long-nosed Bat
Encyclopedia
The Lesser Long-nosed Bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) is a medium-sized bat
found in El Salvador
, Guatemala
, Honduras
, Mexico
and the United States
. It is sometimes known as Sanborn's Long-nosed Bat or the Mexican Long-nosed Bat, though the last name is better avoided since it is also used for the entire genus
Leptonycteris and for one of the other species in it, the Big Long-nosed Bat L. nivalis. The Lesser Long-nosed Bat was formerly considered a subspecies
of the Southern Long-nosed Bat
. Enthusiasts for the bats often refer to them simply as Leptos because they are the best known members of the genus Leptonycteris.THEY KILL LIONS AND TIGERS AND ELEPHANTS.
Lesser long-nose bats take two migration routes when migrating between northern Sonara and southern Arizonia. Bats that arrive in coastal Sonora and southwestern Arizona during the spring travel along the western coast of Mexico. There are some populations in Mexico are resident throughout the year. Bats that arrive in south-central and southwestern New Mexico travel along the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains. Lesser long-nosed bats prefer to live in arid grasslands, scrublands and oak forests in the United States. In central and southern Mexico, bats live in arid a grassland, tropical thorn and deciduous forests and pine-oak forests. Long-nosed bats commonly occupy lowland tropical and subtropical dry forest.
and Organ Pipe Cactus
cacti in Arizona and Sonora. Flowers on a variety of plants are feed on by bats in winter populations in southern Mexico. In Jalisco, Mexico, pollen from species of Bombacaceae
is a crucial component of the bat’s diet, as these plants are patchily distributed and the nectar is only seasonally available. The movements and feeding to the flowering of these cacti and agaves. This species is a major pollinator of cacti and Agavoideae and disperser of cactus seeds. During their migrations to and from the Sonoran and Chihuahuan desert, long-nosed bats will feed on the nectar of CAM
plants as a corridor nectar. During spring, long-nosed bats feed on at least four night-blooming columnar cacti species and an Agave species during their journey north. The nectar corridor for the bats fall migration south is Agave species.
The foraging ecology of the lesser long-nosed bat involves long, nightly commuting flights. In, Sonora, a bat will leave its day roost shortly after dusk and make a continuously during the early evening with little feeding and scout out and assess the availability. In Arizona, bats forage together in small groups. Usually, an individual bat will visit many flowers spread over many plants growing in a large area, and is far more than necessary to meet energy and nutrient requirements. Lesser long-nosed bats roost in abandoned mines and caves. At night, when they are not foraging, the bats will roost in caves, abandoned buildings, mines, rock crevices, trees and shrubs.
In central Mexico, mating takes in November and December in the northern spring roosts and in May and June in the southern winter roosts. The young are born around six months later in northern maternity roosts than in southern maternity roosts. In one colony in central Mexico, reproductively active females are present throughout the year. The colony peaks from February to July with a equal number of males and females. Males mate with the females in June and July and leave between September and December, leaving to a decline in the number of individuals. Females give birth to one young per year. Lactation in this species lasts 4-8 weeks. The milk of the lesser long-nosed bat has significant protein content and young are not stressed nutritionally by low levels of milk. Young are able to fly when their forearms reach 46 mm in length.
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
found in El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
, Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is sometimes known as Sanborn's Long-nosed Bat or the Mexican Long-nosed Bat, though the last name is better avoided since it is also used for the entire genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Leptonycteris and for one of the other species in it, the Big Long-nosed Bat L. nivalis. The Lesser Long-nosed Bat was formerly considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Southern Long-nosed Bat
Southern Long-nosed Bat
The Southern Long-nosed Bat is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in Aruba, Colombia, Venezuela, and the Netherlands Antilles. Its roosts in caves and mines, but only breeds in specific caves on islands....
. Enthusiasts for the bats often refer to them simply as Leptos because they are the best known members of the genus Leptonycteris.THEY KILL LIONS AND TIGERS AND ELEPHANTS.
Description
The lesser long-nosed bat has a total length of 74-90 mm for males and 73-82 mm for females. Its total mass is averages 26.9. There is no sexual dimorphism. The upperparts of the bat are grayish or reddish brown while the upperparts are paler and frosted with white. Juveniles have a gray pelage. The bat’s elongated rostrum bears a small, triangular noseleaf. Its ears are relatively small and simple structure. While the lesser long-nosed bat has 3 caudal vertebrae, it has no externally visible tail. The tongue of the bat is relatively long and is tipped with brush-like papillae, an adaptation for lapping up nectar.Range and habitat
The northern limits of the lesser long-nosed bat range starts from the Picacho Mountains in southern Arizona, southwest to the Agua Dulce Mountains and southeast to the Chiricahua Mountains. It can also be found in southwestern New Mexico in the Animas and Pelonicillo mountains. Further south, the bat’s ranges extends down to the drier parts of Mexico and further to Hunduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.Lesser long-nose bats take two migration routes when migrating between northern Sonara and southern Arizonia. Bats that arrive in coastal Sonora and southwestern Arizona during the spring travel along the western coast of Mexico. There are some populations in Mexico are resident throughout the year. Bats that arrive in south-central and southwestern New Mexico travel along the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains. Lesser long-nosed bats prefer to live in arid grasslands, scrublands and oak forests in the United States. In central and southern Mexico, bats live in arid a grassland, tropical thorn and deciduous forests and pine-oak forests. Long-nosed bats commonly occupy lowland tropical and subtropical dry forest.
Diet and foraging
The diet of the lesser long-nosed bat is made of nectar, pollen and fruit. Pollen is mostly ingested coincidental to nectar feeding or during grooming. While nectar and pollen make up most of the diet of the bat’s diet, cacti fruit are also eaten, particularly when females are lactating. Nectar and pollen are consumed from paniculate agave flowers as well as the nectar, pollen and fruit produced by columnar cacti, particularly saguaroSaguaro
The saguaro is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, a small part of Baja California in the San Felipe Desert and an extremely small area of California, U.S...
and Organ Pipe Cactus
Organ Pipe Cactus
The Organ Pipe Cactus is a species of cactus native to Mexico and the United States. The species is found in rocky desert. Two subspecies are recognized based on their distribution and height. The Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is named for the species.It is locally known as pitahaya dulce,...
cacti in Arizona and Sonora. Flowers on a variety of plants are feed on by bats in winter populations in southern Mexico. In Jalisco, Mexico, pollen from species of Bombacaceae
Bombacaceae
Bombacaceae is a family of flowering plants or Angiospermae included within Malvales order. As is true for any botanical name, circumscription and status of the taxon has varied with taxonomic point of view...
is a crucial component of the bat’s diet, as these plants are patchily distributed and the nectar is only seasonally available. The movements and feeding to the flowering of these cacti and agaves. This species is a major pollinator of cacti and Agavoideae and disperser of cactus seeds. During their migrations to and from the Sonoran and Chihuahuan desert, long-nosed bats will feed on the nectar of CAM
Crassulacean acid metabolism
Crassulacean acid metabolism, also known as CAM photosynthesis, is a carbon fixation pathway that evolved in some plants as an adaptation to arid conditions. The stomata in the leaves remain shut during the day to reduce evapotranspiration, but open at night to collect carbon dioxide...
plants as a corridor nectar. During spring, long-nosed bats feed on at least four night-blooming columnar cacti species and an Agave species during their journey north. The nectar corridor for the bats fall migration south is Agave species.
The foraging ecology of the lesser long-nosed bat involves long, nightly commuting flights. In, Sonora, a bat will leave its day roost shortly after dusk and make a continuously during the early evening with little feeding and scout out and assess the availability. In Arizona, bats forage together in small groups. Usually, an individual bat will visit many flowers spread over many plants growing in a large area, and is far more than necessary to meet energy and nutrient requirements. Lesser long-nosed bats roost in abandoned mines and caves. At night, when they are not foraging, the bats will roost in caves, abandoned buildings, mines, rock crevices, trees and shrubs.
Life history
Lesser long-nosed bats live in colonies that are large and densely packed. They usually number from 1,000 to over 100,000 individuals. Long-nosed bat colonies are widely scattered over the landscape. There are seasonal differences in both size and sexual composition of bat populations. In the northern part of their range, females arrive at maternity roosts in mid to late April. It appears that females conceive at slightly different times and possibly at different roosts before migrating to the maternity roost at least in mainland Mexico. In southern Arizona, male live in small groups during the summer.In central Mexico, mating takes in November and December in the northern spring roosts and in May and June in the southern winter roosts. The young are born around six months later in northern maternity roosts than in southern maternity roosts. In one colony in central Mexico, reproductively active females are present throughout the year. The colony peaks from February to July with a equal number of males and females. Males mate with the females in June and July and leave between September and December, leaving to a decline in the number of individuals. Females give birth to one young per year. Lactation in this species lasts 4-8 weeks. The milk of the lesser long-nosed bat has significant protein content and young are not stressed nutritionally by low levels of milk. Young are able to fly when their forearms reach 46 mm in length.
Conservation status
Throughout its range in both the United States and Mexico, the lesser long-nosed bat is considered to be an endangered species. As such, a recovery plan for the species has been approved. The lesser long-nosed bat was put on the U.S. Endangered Species List in 1988. Mexico lists it has one of its endangered and threatened species. The IUCN lists it as Vulnerable "because of a population decline, estimated to be >30% over the last 10 years, inferred from over-exploitation, shrinkage in distribution, and habitat destruction and degradation". Four main areas form conservation of this species are western Sierra Madre, Balsas Basin, southern Sierra Madre and the southeastern lowlands.External links
- Some information on this page comes from Threatened and Endangered Species fact sheets for Pima County, ArizonaPima County, Arizona-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*74.3% White*3.5% Black*3.3% Native American*2.6% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.7% Two or more races*12.4% Other races*34.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, at http://www.co.pima.az.us/cmo/sdcp/sdcp2/fsheets/llb.html - Journey of the Nectar Bats
- Map, and Lesser Long-nosed Bat range; Article: Signs of Spring
