Saccopteryx gymnura, Thomas, 1901

Bonaccorso, Frank, 2019, Emballonuridae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 350-373 : 372-373

54 . Amazonian Sac-winged Bat

Saccopteryx gymnura

French: Saccoptère à queue nue / German: Amazonas-Sackflügelfledermaus / Spanish: Sacóptero amazónico

Other common names: Amazonian White-lined Bat, Little White-lined Bat

Taxonomy. Saccopteryx gymnura Thomas, 1901 , “Santarem,” Para, Brazil.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. The Guianas and N Amazonian Brazil (Para State) as far S as Santarém and E to Belém.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 39- 40 mm, tail 13-14 mm, ear 9-13 mm, hindfoot 4—6 mm, forearm 33-5- 35-3 mm; weight 3-4 g. Amazonian Sac-winged Bat is the smallest species of Saccopteryx . Dorsal fur is dark chocolate-brown, usually lacking stripes, but some specimens have very faint wavy stripes. Venter is uniformly brown and slightly paler than dorsum. Ears are triangular and wide at bases. Flight membranes are brown. Posterior edge of wing membrane originates from metatarsals.

Habitat. Primary and secondary rainforests from sea level to elevations of 120 m.

Food and Feeding. The Amazonian Sac-winged Bat is an aerial insectivore that forages close to the ground. Based on wing morphology and direct observations, it is probably specialized to forage in open forest understories or forest gaps.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Amazonian Sac-winged Bats emerge around sunset and forage through darkness of the early night. They likely have a secondary foraging bout near dawn.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. There is limited information on distribution and ecology of the Amazonian Sac-winged Bat. There has been severe deforestation and fragmentation in southern parts of the known distribution. It is protected in Iwokrama Forest in Guyana.

Bibliography. Emmons & Feer (1997), Fonseca et a/. (1996), Hood & Gardner (2008), Lim (2009b), Lim & Engstrom (2001), Sanborn (1937), Simmons & Voss (1998).

Figures

On following pages: 40. Lesser Ghost Bat (Diclidurus scutatus); 41. Isabelline Ghost Bat (Diclidurus isabella); 42. Lesser Dog-like Bat (Peropteryx macrotis); 43. Greater Dog-like Bat (Peropteryx kappleri); 44. Trinidad Dog-like Bat (Peropteryx trinitatis); 45. White-winged Dog-like Bat (Peropteryx leucoptera); 46. Pale-winged Dog-like Bat (Peropteryx pallidoptera); 47. Thomas's Shaggy Bat (Centronycteris centrali); 48. Common Shaggy Bat (Centronycteris maximiliani); 49. Proboscis Bat (Rhynchonycteris naso); 50. Greater Sac-winged Bat (Saccopteryx bilineata}; 51. Lesser Sac-winged Bat (Saccopteryx leptura); 52. rosted Sac-winged Bat (Saccopteryx canescens); 53. Antioquian Sac-winged Bat (Saccopteryx antioquensis); 54. Amazonian Sac-winged Bat (Saccopteryx gymnura).

Distribution. The Guianas and N Amazonian Brazil (Para State) as far S as Santarém and E to Belém.