The Guianan bonneted bat, or Thomas's mastiff bat, (''Eumops maurus'') is a species of

free-tailed bat The Molossidae, or free-tailed bats, are a family of bats within the order Chiroptera. The Molossidae is the fourth-largest family of bats, containing about 110 species as of 2012. They are generally quite robust, and consist of many strong-flyi ...

from South America. It is poorly understood, because it is difficult to capture, and may be one of the rarest Neotropical bats.

Description

The Guianan bonneted bat appears similar to other mastiff bats, with a body about long, and a tail measuring about . The fur is dark chocolate brown in colour, and only slightly paler on the underside than on the rest of the body. The most distinctive feature is a narrow band of white hair running along each flank to the forward part of the mesopatagium. The ears are large and rounded, positioned close together at the base, and mostly hairless, with a small tragus and long antitragus. The wings have narrow tips, and are covered in fur to about half the way along the

humerus The humerus (; ) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of a roun ...

and femur. The uropatagium is also furred for about a third of its area, and is bounded by long calcars running for about three quarters of the length of the membrane edge. Overall, the wing membranes are pale brown in colour. Males also possess a prominent gland on the throat that is either missing or extremely small in females.

Distribution and habitat

The Guianan bonneted bat is found primarily in

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

and

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

, but may also be found in neighbouring parts of Brazil and Venezuela. Little is known of the bat's habitat preferences, but it has been found in humid lowland evergreen forests and pine plantations. A surprising report has been made from Ecuador. It is probably threatened by habitat loss.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q302012 Eumops Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Mammals described in 1901 Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas Bats of South America