44. Trinidad Dog-like Bat

Peropteryx trinitatis

French: Péroptère de Trinidad / German: Trinidad-Hundskopffledermaus I Spanish: Peróptero de Trinidad

Other common names: Trinidadian Dog-like Bat

Taxonomy. Peropteryx trinitatis G. S. Miller, 1899,

“ Port of Spain, Trinidad .”

Peropteryx trinitatis is in the subgenus Peropteryx. It was considered a subspecies of P. macrotis by several authors; however, A. Brosset and P. Charles-Dominique in 1991, based on finding sympatric specimens of P. macrotis and P. trinitatis in French Guiana, accorded full species status to the latter as did N. B. Simmons and R. S. Voss in 1998. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

P. t. trinitatis G. S. Miller, 1899 - recorded in most of Venezuela, the Guianas, and N, NE & Brazil, also on several Caribbean Is (Aruba, Margarita, Trinidad, and Tobago). P. t. phaea G. M. Allen, 1911 — restricted to Grenada I.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 45-46 mm, tail 11-18 mm, ear 10.6-12.9 mm, hindfoot 5.3-7.6 mm, forearm 36-43.5 mm; weight 3.7-8 g. The Trinidad Dog-like Bat is sexually dimorphic in body size and cranial measurements, with females slightly larger than males. Dorsal fur is uniformly dark brown to reddish brown; venter is lighter brown, with red tones. Muzzle is conical. Ears are 10.6-12.9 mm long, and they are wide at bases becoming narrow at tips. P1 is peg-like and lacks well-defined cusps.

Habitat. Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, xeric shrublands, pasture, gardens, swamps, and deserts from sea level to elevations of c.400 m.

Food and Feeding. The Trinidad Dog-like Bat forages for aerial insects within vegetation clutter.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Trinidad Dog-like Bats roost in hollow trees, hollow rotten logs, cave entrances, and houses and under rocks and overhanging banks.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Roosting groups of Trinidad Doglike Bats can contain more than 100 individuals.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. Little is known about natural history and population dynamics of the Trinidad Dog-like Bat. Field surveys searching for roosts and echolocation calls are needed to better understand its distribution. Some museum specimens previously attributed to the Lesser Dog-like Bat ( P. macrotis) might be Trinidad Dog-like Bats. It occurs in protected areas including the 492-ha Mario Viana Municipal Park in Nova Xavantina, Mato Grosso, Brazil.

Bibliography. Brosset & Charles-Dominique (1991), Eisenberg (1989), Emmons & Feer (1997), Handley (1976), Hood & Gardner (2008), Lim etal. (2010), Miller (1899a), Reis et al. (2013), Santos et al. (2016), Simmons (2005), Simmons &Voss (1998), Solari & Martinez-Arias (2014).