Nycteris macrotis Dobson, 1876

Fig. 22 A–F

* Nycteris macrotis Dobson, 1876: 80 .

* Nycteris aethiopica Dobson, 1878: 162, 165.

For a very long time, up to the early 1960s and 1970s, N. aethiopia has been considered a separate species (from N. macrotis). Hayman et al. (1966: 33, 35, 36) followed that view, but also referred to Koopman, who indicated that aethiopica and macrotis are conspecific. Hayman & Hill (1971: 19) still mention the two as separate species, but note that their distinctness is by no means clear, as was suggested by Koopman (1965) and Kock (1969). The multivariate analyses by Van Cakenberghe & De Vree (1985) confirmed that the two forms are conspecific.

Nycteris macrotis has a scattered distribution over CRB, where it occurs in almost all regions, except for the northwestern part of the DRC. The SDM map suggests a wide distribution across Africa south of the Sahara.