The wrinkle-faced bat (''Centurio senex'') is a species of

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 ...

in the family Phyllostomidae and the only identified member of the genus ''Centurio''. This bat is found in various countries in and around

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. It eats fruit but is not classified within the

fruit bat Megabats constitute the family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera (bats). They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genera '' Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus''—flying foxes. They are the only member of the ...

s, and is instead classified as a

leaf-nosed bat The New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are found from southern North America to South America, specifically from the Southwest United States to northern Argentina. They are ecologically the most varied and diverse family within the order ...

even though it does not have a leaf nose. It has an unusually shaped skull which is thought to allow it to eat a wider range of foods than other bats.

Description

''Centurio senex'' is tail-less, medium-sized, and generally has a

pelage Fur is a thick growth of hair that covers the skin of mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an insulating blanket ...

of a drab brown to yellowish-brown colour. It weighs around 17g. Its face is hairless and is covered by convoluted outgrowths of skin (hence the name ''wrinkle-faced''). These skin flaps are more pronounced in males than females. Males also possess a skin mask that can be used to cover their face. The wrinkle-faced bat has storage pouches in its mouth to allow it to store fruit. ''C. senex'' subsp. ''greenhalli'' differs from the more common ''C. senex'' subsp. ''senex'' by being larger and in having a more domed braincase, better developed sagittal crest, and relatively shorter

maxilla The maxilla (plural: ''maxillae'' ) in vertebrates is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. T ...

ry toothrow. Their skulls are extremely short and wide, which is thought to allow them to produce bite forces up to 20% higher than other bats of a similar size. They are able to generate the largest biting force, relative to their size, of any of the leaf-nosed bats.

Diet

The species is entirely

frugivorous A frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance an ...

(fruit-eating) although it is not known which types of fruit it consumes. Elizabeth Dumont from the University of Massachusetts believes that the strong biting force of the bat allows them to survive through times when soft fruit (such as soft bananas, mangoes, papayas, etc.) is scarce as they are able to eat tougher fruit than other bats. Seed predation has been recorded in Mexican populations, which has been suggested as another function of the bite force.

Reproduction

Females are thought to be both

polyestrous The estrous cycle (, originally ) is the set of recurring physiological changes that are induced by reproductive hormones in most mammalian therian females. Estrous cycles start after sexual maturity in females and are interrupted by anestrous ...

and asynchronous, pregnant females have been recorded every month between January and August except May. Males emit a musky odour from the chin area to attract females. Their sperm morphology is unique in that the sperm head has a rounded

nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: *Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom * Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucl ...

and extremely pointed

acrosome The acrosome is an organelle that develops over the anterior (front) half of the head in the spermatozoa (sperm cells) of many animals including humans. It is a cap-like structure derived from the Golgi apparatus. In placental mammals the acrosome ...

. Recent research on the bats in Costa Rica suggests that the bats exhibit

Lek mating A lek is an aggregation of male animals gathered to engage in competitive displays and courtship rituals, known as lekking, to entice visiting females which are surveying prospective partners with which to mate. A lek can also indicate an avail ...

Range

''Centurio senex'' subsp. ''senex'' is found in

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

and

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 ...

. ''C. senex'' subsp. ''greenhalli'' is only found in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

Etymology

The binomial name ''Centurio senex'' is formed from the Latin ''centurio'' meaning division into hundreds and ''senex'' referring to old people. This name was chosen as it was thought that the face of the bat looked like that of a one-hundred-year-old man.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q301611 Phyllostomidae Mammals of Colombia Bats of Central America Mammals described in 1842 Taxa named by John Edward Gray Taxonomy articles created by Polbot