Lichonycteris obscura, Thomas, 1895

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Phyllostomidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 444-583 : 525

81.

Dark Long-tongued Bat

Lichonycteris obscura

French: Lichonyctére sombre / German: Dunkle Langzungenfledermaus / Spanish: Liconicterio oscuro

Other common names: Dark Brown Long-nosed Bat

Taxonomy. Lichonycteris obscura Thomas, 1895 ,

“ Managua,” Nicaragua.

For a long time, L. obscura was considered conspecific with L. degener from South America, east of the Andes. Monotypic.

Distribution. S Mexico (Tabasco and Chiapas) S through Central America to the W slope of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 46-55 mm, tail 6-9 mm, ear 9-13 mm, hindfoot 8-12 mm, forearm 31-35 mm; weight 6-8-8 g (non-reproductive adults). Males are notably smaller than females. Dorsal fur of the Dark Long-tongued Bat is dark brown and has clearly tricolored hairs, with dark bases, pale middles, and dark tips. It is one of the smallest nectar-feeding specialists of phyllostomids, with only moderately elongated and rather slender rostrum. Wing membrane is attached to foot near bases of outer toes. Lower incisors are missing, and there are only two upper and lower molars.

Habitat. Mainly evergreen lowland primary and secondary rainforests but occasionally more disturbed areas when nectar resources are abundant (plantations) from lowlands up to elevations of ¢. 1000 m.

Food and Feeding. The Dark Long-tongued Batis a nectar specialist. In north-eastern Costa Rica, they visited at least 14 different plant species, including bromeliads, the Balsa tree ( Ochroma pyramidale , Malvaceae ), Mucuna holtonu (Fabaceae) , and cultivated banana. An individual in Chiapas had eaten pollen of Lonchocarpus sp. ( Fabaceae ).

Breeding. Pregnant Dark Long-tongued Bats were found in north-eastern Costa Rica in October-February, suggesting a bimodal reproduction pattern.

Activity patterns. Dark Long-tongued Bats are strictly nocturnal. The few roosting Dark Long-tongued Bats observed so far were found exclusively alone and within or underfallen trees, mostly close to the ground.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Dark L.ong-tongued Bats occur only at very low densities. In north-eastern Costa Rica, they were almost exclusively captured in October-February, during a period of high flower availability; their whereabouts outside this period were unknown. Very small body size appears not to be particularly conducive for large-scale migration, so perhaps this seasonal appearance was caused by their small-scale resource tracking movements.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Nevertheless, the Dark Long-tongued Bat probably depends largely on evergreen forest habitats that could be threatened in the future.

Bibliography. Griffiths & Gardner (2008a), Hill (1986a), Reid (2009), Solari (2018f), Tschapka (1998, 2004), Villalobos-Chaves et al. (2013).

Figures

63. Tailed Tailless Bat (Anoura caudifer), 64. Ecuadorian Tailless Bat (Anowra aequatoris), 65. Cadena’s Tailless Bat (Anowra cadenai), 66. Tube-lipped Tailless Bat (Anoura fistulata), 67. Luis Manuel’s Tailless Bat (Anoura luismanueli), 68. Peruvian Tailless Bat (Anowra javier), 69. Handley’s Tailless Bat (Anoura cultrata), 70. Broad-toothed Tailless Bat (Anowra latidens), 71. Geoffroy’s Tailless Bat (Anoura geoffroy), 72. Tschudi’s Tailless Bat (Anoura peruana), 74. Godman’s Long-tailed Bat (Choeroniscus godmani), 75. Lesser Long-tailed Bat (Choeroniscus minor), 76. Greater Long-tailed Bat (Choeroniscus periosus), 77. Mexican Long-tongued Bat (Choeronycteris mexicana), 78. Capixaba Nectarfeeding Bat (Dryadonycteris capixaba), 79. Banana Bat (Musonycteris harrisoni), 80. Pale Brown Long-tongued Bat (Lichonycteris degener), 81. Dark Long-tongued Bat (Lichonycteris obscura), 82. Ega Long-tongued Bat (Scleronycteris ega)

Distribution. S Mexico (Tabasco and Chiapas) S through Central America to the W slope of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador .