The Khasian leaf-nosed bat (''Hipposideros khasiana'') is a species of bat in the family

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 subfamily, Hipposiderinae, of the family Rhinolophidae, it is now more generally classified as its own family.Simmons, 20 ...

. It is endemic to

Meghalaya Meghalaya (, or , meaning "abode of clouds"; from Sanskrit , "cloud" + , "abode") is a state in northeastern India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of Assam: (a) the United Khasi Hills and J ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is a cave-dwelling bat.

Taxonomy

The species was earlier considered a population of '' H. larvatus''. However. it has now been elevated to species level on the basis of different echolocation call frequencies and genetic divergence. The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of sever ...

for the species was collected in the Tem-Dibai Cave.

Biology

Echolocation

The bat's echolocation is a part of the 85 kHz phonic type.

Habitat and distribution

The species has only been observed roosting in caves in the

Khasi Hills The Khasi Hills () is a low mountain formation on the Shillong Plateau in Meghalaya state of India. The Khasi Hills are part of the Garo-Khasi-Jaintia range and connects with the Purvanchal Range and larger Patkai Range further east. Khasi Hil ...

in India. According to Mark A. Jobling in a paper about investigative genetics, the Khasian Leaf-nosed bat is an extremely rare and localized species with the chances of encountering one being very low. Jobling, M.A. The truth is out there. Investig Genet 4, 24 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1186/2041-2223-4-24

Conservation

The bat is considered data deficient due to the lack of substantial information regarding its habits and distribution. Its known habitat is not part of any protected area.

References

Hipposideros {{Hipposideridae-stub