Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Cladus: Synapsida
Cladus: Eupelycosauria
Cladus: Sphenacodontia
Cladus: Sphenacodontoidea
Cladus: Therapsida
Cladus: Theriodontia
Cladus: Cynodontia
Cladus: Eucynodontia
Cladus: Probainognathia
Cladus: Prozostrodontia
Cladus: Mammaliaformes
Classis: Mammalia
Subclassis: Trechnotheria
Infraclassis: Zatheria
Supercohors: Theria
Cohors: Eutheria
Infraclassis: Placentalia
Cladus: Boreoeutheria
Superordo: Laurasiatheria
Cladus: Scrotifera
Ordo: Chiroptera
Subordo: Yangochiroptera
Superfamilia: Noctilionoidea
Familia: Mormoopidae
Genus: Mormoops
Species: Mormoops blainvillei
Name
Mormoops blainvillei Leach, 1821 [conserved name]
Type material: former Mus. D. Brookes. [Unknown]
Type locality: “Jamaica”.
Placed on the Official List of Specific Names in Zoology by Opinion 462 (1957: 4).
Combinations
Mormoops Blainvillii Leach, 1821: 77 [incorrect original spelling]
Mormoops Blainvillei: Gervais, 1837: 108 [justified emendation]
Synonyms
Aëllo Cuvieri Leach, 1821: 71
Type material: BMNH 2003.68 (former Mus. D. Brookes), adult sex indet., skin and skull, presented by W. Bullock.
Type locality: not stated, “presumed to be Jamaica” fide Smith (1972: 108, 111).
Lobostoma cinnamomeum Gundlach, 1840: 357
Holotype: Unknown.
Type locality: “in der Stube des Cafetal St, Antonio el Fundador”, Canímar, Matanzas province, Cuba.
Native distribution areas
Cuba
Jamaica
Hispaniola: Haiti and Dominican Republic
Puerto Rico including Mona Island
References
Primary references
Leach, W.E. 1821. The Characters of three new Genera of Bats without foliaceous Appendages to the Nose. The Transactions of the Linnaean Society of London 13: 69–72. BHL Reference page.
Leach, W.E. 1821. The Characters of seven Genera of Bats with foliaceous Appendages to the Nose. The Transactions of the Linnaean Society of London 13: 73–82. BHL Reference page.
Gundlach, J. 1840. Beschreibung von vier auf Cuba gefangenen Fledermäusen. Archiv für Naturgeschichte 6(1): 356–358. BHL Reference page.
International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. 1957. Opinion 462. Addition to the Official List of Generic Names in Zoology of the generic name Mormoops Leach, 1821 (Class Mammalia). pp. 1–12 In Hemming, F. (ed.). Opinions and declarations rendered by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature Volume 16. Part 1. International Trust for Zoological Nomenclature: London. 528 pp. BHL Reference page.
Smith, J.D. 1972. Systematics of the Chiropteran Family Mormoopidae. Miscellaneous Publication, University of Kansas Museum of Natural History 56: 1–132. BHL Reference page.
Additional references
Rehn, J.A.G. 1902. A revision of the genus Mormoops. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 54: 160–172. BHL Reference page.
Carter, D.C. & Dolan, P.G. 1978. Catalogue of Type Specimens of Neotropical Bats in Selected European Museums. Special Publications. The Museum Texas Tech University 15: 1–136. BHL Reference page.
Simmons, N.B. 2005. Order Chiroptera. Pp. 312–529 in Wilson, D.E. & Reeder, D.M. (eds.) . Mammal Species of the World: a taxonomic and geographic reference. 3rd edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore. 2 volumes. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. Reference page.
Patton, J.L. & Gardner, A.L. [2007] 2008. Family Mormoopidae Saussure, 1860. Pp. 376–384 in Gardner, A.L. (ed.), Mammals of South America. Volume 1. Marsupials, xenarthrans, shrews, and bats. The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, Illinois. ISBN 978-0-226-28240-4. Reference page.
Links
Miller, B., Reid, F., Arroyo-Cabrales, J., Cuarón, A.D. & de Grammont, P.C. 2016. IUCN: Mormoops blainvillei (Least Concern). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T13877A22085914. DOI: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T13877A22085914.en. Accessed on 27 February 2024.
Vernacular names
English: Antillean Ghost-faced Bat
The Antillean ghost-faced bat (Mormoops blainvillei) is a species of bat in the family Mormoopidae. It is found in the Greater Antilles: Cuba, Hispaniola (the Dominican Republic and Haiti) Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.
Description
These bats range in color from a pale cinnamon to a more reddish color, showing darker pigmentation on the dorsal side as opposed to the ventral. No molting specimens have been observed[2] and no geographic variation in color has been studied, observed or documented.
Like other species in the Mormoops genus, the Antillean ghost-faced bat shows elaborate, intricate facial outgrowths and leaflike appendages. The face features nostrils located on a fleshy pad, and coarse bristles protruding from both lips. These features aid in echolocation.[3][4]
Fossil record
The fossil record for this species is limited and sparse, but the evidence found indicates a wider range which previously extended to all of the Caribbean islands as well as the Bahamas.[5]
Ecology
The Antillean ghost-faced bat has been predominantly observed roosting in deeper, more sheltered caves or abandoned mine shafts, as opposed to caves with multiple entrances.[2] Here, it coexists with other bat species.
Analysis of stomach contents has shown that these bats feed exclusively on insects, which they catch utilizing a pouch formed by the large leaflike tail membrane. Target prey, mostly moths, are caught in midair.[2]
Behavior
M. blainvilli is a strictly nocturnal species. The onset of activity varies from 22 to 55 minutes after sunset. This late onset has been associated with the peak activity of lepidopterans, which are their preferred prey.[2]
The flight of this bat is faster and higher than that of other bats in its genus, and a distinct humming sound has been correlated with its flight.[6] They are known to use the same biosonar vocalizations as in other echolocating bats. As the bat searches for a target (typically moths), it produces search signals with an average duration of 1.8 ms, which change from a shallow FM-sweep to a steep one. When approaching its target, M. blainvilli reduces the duration of its vocalizations. In the terminal phase, it produces a higher number of calls which are drastically shorter in duration.[7]
The morphology of M. blainvilli is similar to M. megalophylla, as the main adaptations by Mormoops bats are to reduce body weight to increase flying ability. These adaptations include decreased muscular structures, some of which are absent altogether as compared to species of Phyllostomidae. These restrictions result in a decreased range of extension.[8] The aspect ratio of the wings of one bat were calculated as 6.23, similar to M. megalophylla.[9] These characteristics are hypothesized to give the bat an advantage in terms of flight endurance, and have been adapted for its insectivorous diet.[8]
Biology
The mating season begins with copulation spanning from January to February. From March to May, pregnancies occur, and the earliest births occur in June. Weaning is completed from August to September, and in October to December, females are non-responsive to mating. Each reproductive female typically bears one child per year, with twins being reported in only two instances.[2]
The thermoneutral zone for M. blainvilli extends from 31 to 34 °C, and body temperature is maintained between these two temperatures over a wide range of ambient temperature (15–41 °C). However, as ambient temperature decreases below 28 °C, the maintenance of body temperature in individuals is less stable and has been observed in some to decrease below 25 °C. In these low temperatures, bats respond by elevating their basal metabolic rate.[10]
References
Miller, B.; Reid, F.; Arroyo-Cabrales, J.; Cuarón, A.D.; de Grammont, P.C. (2016). "Mormoops blainvillei". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T13877A22085914. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T13877A22085914.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
Silva Taboada, G. 1979. Los Murciélagos de Cuba. Editorial Academia, La Habana, 423 pp.
Anthony, H. E. 1918. Indigenous land mammals of Porto Rico, living and extinct. Memoirs of the American Museum of Natural History, New Series, 2:394-435.
"El Yunque National Forest - Nature & Science". USDA.
Koopman, K. F., Hecht, M. K., and Ledecky-Janecek, E. 1957. Notes on the mammals of the Bahamas with special reference to bats. Journal of Mammalogy, 38:164-174.
Goodwin, R. E. 1970. The ecology of Jamaican bats. Journal of Mammalogy, 51:571–579.
Schnitzler, H. U., Kaipf, I. and Mogdans, J. 1991. Comparative studies of echolocation and hunting behavior in the four species of mormoopid bats of Jamaica. Bat research News, 32:22-23.
Vaughn, T. A., and Bateman, G. C. 1970. Functional morphology of the forelimb of mormoopid bats. Journal of Mammalogy, 51:217-235.
Smith, J. D., and Starrett, A. 1979. Morphometric analysis of chriopteran wings. Pp. 229-316, in Biology of bats of the New World family Phyllostomatidae. Part III (R. J. Baker, J. K. Jones, Jr., and D. C. Carter, eds.). Special Publications, The Museum, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 441 pp.
Rodriguez-Duran, A. 1991. Comparative environmental physiology of bats roosting in hot caves. Ph.D. dissert., Boston University, 125 pp.
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