Rhinolophus sedulus, K. Andersen, 1905

Burgin, Connor, 2019, Rhinolophidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 280-332 : 328

97 . Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat

Rhinolophus sedulus

French: Rhinolophe diligent / German: Kleine Wollhaar-Hufeisennase / Spanish: Herradura lanoso pequeno

Taxonomy. Rhinolophus sedulus K. Andersen, 1905 ,

“ Sarawak ,” Malaysia .

Rhinolophus sedulus is included in the trifoliatus species group, and appears to be close to R. trifoliatus . Monotypic.

Distribution. Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 47—51 mm, tail 19-30 mm, ear 17-21 mm, hindfoot 10 mm, forearm 37—48 mm; weight 6-8— 11 g. Fur is long and fluffy; dorsal pelage is dark brown or black with a grayish reflection (tips of hairs grayish); ventral pelage is similar but without a grayish reflection. Ears are medium-sized and dark brown to black. Noseleaf is dark brown or black, with a nearly straight-sided lancet; connecting process is moderately low and rounded; sella is nearly parallel-sided above and deflected downward at the tip, and has large circular lateral lappets at the base; horseshoe is c.10- 3 mm wide and has a relatively small median emargination. Lower lip has one mental groove. Skull is small but robust (zygomatic width always greater than mastoid width); anterior median swellings are moderately inflated and do not reach anteriorly to the border of the rostrum; posterior swellings are less inflated; sagittal crest is less developed than in other species of the trifoliatus group; frontal depression is deeply hollowed; supraorbital crests are prominent with sharp ridges. C 1 is short but not exceptionally strong; P2 is medium-sized to fairly large with a minute cusp, and is within the tooth row; P3 is moderate-sized and extruded from the tooth row to a variable degree; P and P4 are touching or nearly so. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 28 and FNa = 52 (Peninsular Malaysia).

Habitat. Mainly found in primary tropical forest but also known from secondary forest. Recorded from sea level up to 1500 m; most commonly found at lower elevations.

Food and Feeding. The Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat forages for insects in the forest understory.

Breeding. Unlike most horseshoe bats that are polygynous, Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bats may be monogamous.

Activity patterns. The Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat commonly roosts in tree hollows, or occasionally under foliage, rarely roosting in caves and culverts. Call shape is FM/ CF/FM with a peak F recorded at 66-8 kHz in Peninsular Malaysia, and 62 kHz and 76 kHz in Sabah (two individuals).

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bats roost singly or in small groups. They have small home ranges, recorded at a 400-m radius from the roost. This species was reported roosting with the Great Woolly Horseshoe Bat ( Ä luctus ) in a culvert in Borneo.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Near Threatened on The IUCNed List. The Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat is dependent on lowland forests, which have experienced widespread deforestation from logging, forest fires, and agricultural expansion throughout the species’ distribution. It may also be threatened by general roost disturbance. The species already appears to be rare, occurring at low densities throughout its distribution.

Bibliography. Blundell (1996), Csorba eta /. (2003), rancis (2008 a), Heller eta/. (1993), Hutson & Kingston (2008a), Kingston (2013), Kingston, rancis eta/. (2003), Kingston, Jones eta/. (2000), Kingston, Lim & Zubaid (2006), Phillipps & Phillipps (2016), Soisook, Niyomwan eta /. (2010), Soisook, Struebig eta/. (2015), Tingga et al. (2012), Volleth eta/. (2014), Zhang Lin et al. (2018).

Figures

On following pages: 94. Thomas's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus thomasi); 95. Lesser Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros); 96. rancis's Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus trancisi); 97. Lesser Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus sedulus); 98. Trefoil Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus trifoliatus); 99. Northern Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus perniger); 100. Selangor Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus luctoides); 101. Malaysian Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mono); 102. Great Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus luctus); 1.03. Beddome's Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus beddomei); 104. Formosan Woolly Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus formosaë); 105. Thailand Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus thailandensis); 106. Dobson's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus yunanensis); 107. Chiew Kwee's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus chiewkweeae); 108. Pearson's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus pearsonii); 109. Mitred Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus mitratus).

Distribution. Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo.