The Cozumelan golden bat (''Mimon cozumelae'') 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 found in

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

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 cou ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

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 Cos ...

and

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

. At one time, this species was considered to be a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of the

golden bat The golden bat (''Mimon bennettii'') is a bat species found in Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venez ...

(''Mimon bennettii''). Little is known about the biology of this bat, but it has a wide range, no particular threats have been identified, and the population seems steady, so the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed its conservation status as being of " the least concern".

Taxonomy and etymology

It was described as a new species in 1914 by American zoologist

Edward Alphonso Goldman Edward Alphonso Goldman (July 7, 1873 – September 2, 1946) was an American zoologist and botanist. He worked extensively in Mexico with Edward William Nelson and described and revised many groups of mammals. He was born Edward Alphonso Goltman i ...

. 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 several ...

had been collected on

Cozumel Cozumel (; yua, Kùutsmil) is an island and municipality in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen. It is separated from the mainland by the Cozumel Channel and is close to the Yucatán ...

by G. F. Gaumer. At times, it has been considered a

of the

, ''Mimon bennettii''.

Description

Its forearm length is . Individuals weigh approximately . It has a

dental formula Dentition pertains to the development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth. In particular, it is the characteristic arrangement, kind, and number of teeth in a given species at a given age. That is, the number, type, and morpho-physiolo ...

of for a total of 30 teeth.

Biology and ecology

It roosts in small groups by day, mostly in limestone caves, but sometimes in hollow logs. It hunts at night and may glean prey from tree foliage. Its diet is known to include

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

katydid Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (especially in North America), or bush crickets. They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers". More than 8,000 species are known. Part of the suborder Ensifera, t ...

s, birds and lizards. Breeding takes place at the start of the rainy season, with females giving birth to a single offspring.

Range and habitat

The Cozumelan golden bat is a lowland species and is found in mature evergreen, semi-deciduous, and dry forest. It has been documented at a range of elevations from above sea level.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2490843 Phyllostomidae Bats of Central America Bats of South America Bats of Mexico Mammals of Colombia Least concern biota of North America Mammals described in 1914 Taxa named by Edward Alphonso Goldman