Strelkov's long-eared bat (''Plecotus strelkovi'') is a species of
vesper bat found in mountainous regions of
Central Asia.
Taxonomy
It was described in 2006 based on specimens previously classified without justification as
Ward's long-eared bat (''P. wardi'') and later the
grey long-eared bat
The grey long-eared bat (''Plecotus austriacus'') is a fairly large European bat. It has distinctive ears, long and with a distinctive fold. It hunts above woodland, often by day, and mostly for moths. In captivity, it has also been recorded t ...
(''P. austriacus''). However, genetic and morphological evidence confirmed that these populations represented a distinct, previously undescribed species, and it was described as ''Plecotus strelkovi''. Phylogenetic evidence supports it being a
sister species to a group comprising
Christie's long-eared bat
Christie's long-eared bat (''Plecotus christii''), also known as the Egyptian long-eared bat, Christie's big-eared bat, or gray long-eared bat, is a species of vesper bat in the family Vespertilionidae. It is known from North Africa and the Middle ...
(''P. christii''), the
Mediterranean long-eared bat
The Mediterranean long-eared bat (''Plecotus kolombatovici''), also known as Kolombatovic's long-eared bat, is a species of vesper bat ranging from Italy east through the Balkans east to Syria, and south to Jordan.
Taxonomy
The species was desc ...
(''P. kolombatovici''), and the
grey long-eared bat
The grey long-eared bat (''Plecotus austriacus'') is a fairly large European bat. It has distinctive ears, long and with a distinctive fold. It hunts above woodland, often by day, and mostly for moths. In captivity, it has also been recorded t ...
(''P. austriacus'').
It is accepted as a distinct species by the
American Society of Mammalogists
The American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) was founded in 1919. Its primary purpose is to encourage the study of mammals, and professions studying them. There are over 4,500 members of this society, and they are primarily professional scientists ...
, the
IUCN Red List, and the
ITIS.
The species is named in honor of Russian mammalogist
Petr Petrovich Strelkov
Petr is a Czech given name for males and a Czech surname. Petr is the Czech form of ''Peter''. For information on Petr as a first name, see Peter (given name).
Given name
* Petr Aven (born 1955), Russian billionaire banker, economist and politic ...
.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to the
xeric mountain ranges of
Central Asia and adjoining regions. It ranges from northeastern
Iran through the mountains of Central Asia, and east to northwestern
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. It is found in the
Pamir and
Tien Shan mountain ranges. It is known from montane and forest-
steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate grasslands, ...
habitats.
Status
This species is considered
Least Concern on the
IUCN Red List and does not face any major threats.
See also
*
Plecotus
''Plecotus'' is a genus of vesper bat, commonly called long-eared bats. They are found throughout Eurasia and northern Africa. Many species in the genus have only been described and recognized in recent years.
Species
Genus ''Plecotus'' – lon ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2168994
Plecotus
Bats of Asia
Mammals of Central Asia
Mammals described in 2006