The dark fruit-eating bat (''Artibeus obscurus''), is a
bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
from
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
.
Description
Dark fruit-eating bats are relatively small, with an average body length of , and weighing from . Their fur is longer and darker than that of
their closest relatives, being dark brown to sooty black over most of the body, with a white frosting. The underparts are paler, and there are also faint stripes of pale fur on the face. The
nose-leaf
A nose-leaf, or leaf nose, is an often large, lance-shaped nose, found in bats of the Phyllostomidae, Hipposideridae
The Hipposideridae are a family of bats commonly known as the Old World leaf-nosed bats. While it has often been seen as a su ...
is broad, with a distinct horseshoe separated from the upper lip. The snout is relatively narrow for a bat of its small size, and the ears are rounded, with a sharply pointed
tragus.
Distribution and habitat
Dark-fruit eating bats are found throughout the
Amazon Basin
The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivi ...
. They are known from all but the southernmost parts of Brazil, from
the Guyanas
The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories:
* French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France
* G ...
, and from the Amazonian regions of countries from
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
to
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
. They inhabit rainforests from sea level to , and, in the southern part of their range, savannah and patchy semi-deciduous forests. There are no recognised subspecies.
Biology
The bats are generally low-flying, travelling close to the ground through forested terrain. They spend the day roosting under leaves or flaking pieces of bark about above the ground.[ They feed on ]fig
The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...
s, and the fruit of trees such as shimbillo and uvilla.[
]
Gallery
File:Artibeus obscurus teeth.jpg, Artibeus obscurus and its teeth
File:Artibeus obscurus.jpeg, ''Artibeus obscurus skull''
File:Naturalis Biodiversity Center - ZMA.MAM.2449.a lat - Artibeus obscurus - skull.jpeg
File:Naturalis Biodiversity Center - ZMA.MAM.2449.a pal - Artibeus obscurus - skull.jpeg
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q139432
Artibeus
Bats of South America
Bats of Brazil
Fauna of the Amazon
Mammals of Bolivia
Mammals of Colombia
Mammals of Ecuador
Mammals of French Guiana
Mammals of Guyana
Mammals of Peru
Mammals of Suriname
Mammals of Venezuela
Mammals described in 1826