The greater spear-nosed bat (''Phyllostomus hastatus'') 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 ...
of the family
Phyllostomidae from
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...
and
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 is one of the larger bats of this region and is ]omnivorous
An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nutri ...
.
Habitat
''Phyllostomus hastatus'' lives in tropical regions of the Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
. The species ranges from Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
and 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 ...
south to Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
, 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 ...
, Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
, northern Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. It also occurs 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 ...
and on Margarita Island (Venezuela).[ Although most commonly found around streams and other bodies of water, these bats are also present in drier areas. They inhabit both open and forested regions.][
]
Appearance
The greater spear-nosed bat has a body length of around , with a wing span of . Despite the large size, it is very light, weighing on average . Its long, thick hair is dark brown, with a slight orange tinge on the ventral side.[ It has a well-developed nose shaped like a spear-head, which gives it its more common name. The ears are spread far apart and are smaller than in other phyllostomids. The lower lip has a distinctive V-shaped groove and many warts.][ Both sexes have a throat sac just above breast bone.][ That of the male is enlarged,][ while the female's is much smaller and simpler.
]
Feeding
''P. hastatus'' sometimes eats vertebrates (such as mice, birds and other bats),[ but much less so than other phyllostomids. It is omnivorous, most commonly feeding on fruit, seeds,][ pollen, nectar][ and insects.][ Vertebrates comprise a minor part of its diet. Norberg and Fenton (1988) speculate that this is due to its "higher aspect ratio and wing loading".][ ''P. hastatus'' has an extremely sensitive sense of smell. When foraging for food, it can locate hidden pieces of banana amongst the leaf litter on the forest floor.][ Other fruiting plants that are consumed by ''P. hastatus'' are species in the genera '']Cecropia
''Cecropia'' is a Neotropical genus consisting of 61 recognized species with a highly distinctive lineage of dioecious trees.
The genus consists of pioneer trees in the more or less humid parts of the Neotropics, with the majority of the speci ...
'', ''Piper
Piper may refer to:
People
* Piper (given name)
* Piper (surname)
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters Comics
* Piper (Morlock), in the Marvel Universe
* Piper (Mutate), in the Marvel Universe
Television
* Piper Chapman, lea ...
'', ''Solanum
''Solanum'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants, which include three food crops of high economic importance: the potato, the tomato and the eggplant (aubergine, brinjal). It is the largest genus in the nightshade family Solanaceae ...
'' and ''Vismia
''Vismia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hypericaceae. Members of the genus are small trees and shrubs found in tropical and subtropical areas of Central America and South America.
Including the countries of Belize, Bolivia, Brazil ...
''.[
]
Echolocation
''P. hastatus'' has a broad bandwidth call that enables it to resolve distances almost as small as . This implies that it can distinguish echoes as little as 20 microseconds apart.[
]
Group structure
''P. hastatus'' roosts in caves, hollows in trees, termite mounds and thatched roofs. It lives in groups of between ten and a hundred. Within this group there may be several subgroups, as one dominant male presides over a group of up to thirty females.[ The average harem size is eighteen.][ The dominant male may be in control of the harem for many years. The remaining 80% of males and young females form their own large ''bachelor group'' to complete the colony.][ Studies by McCracken and Bradbury (1977) have shown that unrelated females in the colony often form stable factions.][ Recent studies have shown, that even though females do live in stable co-operative groups or "tribes" with non-kin, and will protect unrelated pups of their own group, they attack and even kill pups from other groups living in the same cave.][
McCracken and Bradbury considered many possible reasons for group formation in ''P. hastatus''. The most plausible are thought to be co-operation in foraging for food, and protection and defence while feeding. Once food is found, a successful bat forager alerts others in the feeding group to the location. This was also found by Wilkinson (1995), who noted that ''P. hastatus'' call on the other members of the group when finding food, in the absence of territorial calls. Feeding groups may be segregated by social status. Dominant males have feeding sites close to the roost, while single males may have to fly as far as 9 km in order to find a feeding site.][
]
Reproduction
The pattern of reproduction in ''P. hastatus'' may vary over its range. Although this bat generally only reproduces once a year, lactating females have been found throughout the year, suggesting that some may reproduce more often. They give birth to only one young at a time. The reproduction rate is very low. Even with a change of the dominant male, constancy is almost always maintained.[ McCracken and Bradbury (1977, 1981) characterized the reproduction cycle of ''P. hastatus'' as follows:][
February – April; ]pregnancy
Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins.
Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ca ...
May – mid-July; lactation
Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The proces ...
Mid-July – late October; anoestrous
Late October – February; oestrous
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 p ...
It has been hypothesized that it is females that eat vertebrates, to provide protein for lactation.[
]
Economic importance
The activities of ''P. hastatus'' are both beneficial and costly to humans. They feed on insects and other pests that could harm crops, and they help pollinate many crops. However, they also consume some crops, such as bananas. Although they are not endangered, there is concern over destruction of their habitat.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greater Spear-Nosed Bat
Phyllostomidae
Bats of Central America
Bats of South America
Bats of Brazil
Mammals of Colombia
Mammals described in 1767
Taxa named by Peter Simon Pallas