Mehely's horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus mehelyi'') is a species of

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores were ...

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 ...

in the family Rhinolophidae found in Southern Europe and parts of the Middle East. It is distributed in a narrow band around the Mediterranean Sea from North-Western Africa across Portugal, Spain, the Balearics, southern France, Sardinia, Sicily and the Balkan Peninsula to Asia Minor.

Description

The bat is medium-sized for a member of the genus ''Rhinolophus'', with pale lips and grey-brown ears and flight membranes. The fur is relatively thick, with the base of hairs grey-white. Ventral fur is almost white, while dorsal fur is grey-brown; the line between the dorsal and ventral sides is relatively sharp.

Habitat

The bat is cave-dwelling, preferring areas of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

with nearby water. It has been known to roost in caves with other horseshoe bats such as ''Rhinolophus hipposideros'', as well as ''Myotis myotis'' and ''Miniopterus schreibersi''. It prefers to roost in warmer cave cavities, such as those found in the Cova de Sa Guitarreta (

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

), while hanging free on the cave roof.

Hunting

The bat emerges at dusk, hunting low over the ground on warm hillsides and also among bushes and trees, preying on moths and other insects.

Echolocation

The constant frequency sound is between 105 and 112 kHz, with a short drop in frequency at the end of the signal, which normally lasts between 20 and 30 milliseconds. There is some frequency overlap with the lesser horseshoe bat and the

Mediterranean horseshoe bat The Mediterranean horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus euryale'') is a species of insectivorous bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are ...

Mating and selection

A behavioral study conducted by Puechmaille et al. (2014) revealed that the peak frequencies of echolocation calls emitted by male and female ''Rhinolophus mehelyi'' accurately reflect their body size and condition. In the experiment, larger males proved to have higher call frequencies that attracted females twice as often as males with lower call frequencies. In contrast, males appeared to choose females at random. This distinction suggests that females choose males based on their call frequency for the indirect benefits of having healthier and fitter offspring. The mating system is therefore comparable to a

lek Lek or LEK may refer to: * Lek mating, mating in a lek, a type of animal territory in which males of a species gather * Albanian lek, the currency of Albania * Lek (magazine), a Norwegian softcore pornographic magazine * Lek (pharmaceutical comp ...

, making female

mate choice Mate choice is one of the primary mechanisms under which evolution can occur. It is characterized by a "selective response by animals to particular stimuli" which can be observed as behavior.Bateson, Paul Patrick Gordon. "Mate Choice." Mate Choic ...

a selection factor in the evolution of call frequency in males that may counter other selection pressures imposed by their ecological niche.Puechmaille, S. J., I. M. Borissov, S. Zsebok, B. Allegrini, M. Hizem, S. Kuenzel, M. Schuchmann et al. 2014. Female mate choice can drive the evolution of high frequency echolocation in bats: A case study with ''Rhinolophus mehelyi''. PLoS ONE 9:9:e103452.

References

* * Agnelli, P., Martinoli, A., Patriarca, E., Russo, D., Scaravelli, D. & Genovesi, P. (2004), Linee guida per il monitoraggio dei Chirotteri: indicazioni metodologiche per lo studio e la conservazione dei pipistrelli in Italia. Quaderni di Conservazione della NaturaMinistero dell'Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio - Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica "A. Ghigi", Roma * GIRC (2004), The Italian bat roost project: a preliminary inventory of sites and conservation perspectives Hystrix, It. J. Mammal. pp. 55–68 * Lanza, B. (2012), Fauna d'Italia, Chiroptera Calderini, Bologna * Mucedda, M. (1994), Note su Rhinolophus mehelyi (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae) della Sardegna. Boll. Gruppo Spel. Sassarese n.15: pp. 43–46 * Mucedda, M., Pidinchedda, E., Bertelli, M.L (2009), Status del Rinolofo di Mehely (Rhinolophus mehelyi) (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae) in Italia. Atti del 2° Convegno Italiano sui Chirotteri, Serra San Quirico (AN) pp. 89–98 * Ruffo, S. & Stock, F. (2005), Checklist e distribuzione della fauna italiana Memorie dei Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Verona - 2. Serie Sezione Scienze della Vita * Russo D, Almenar D, Aihartza J, Goiti U, Salsamendi E, Garin I. (2005), Habitat selection in sympatric Rhinolophus mehelyi and R. euryale (Mammalia : Chiroptera) Journal of Zoology pp. 327–332 {{Taxonbar, from=Q1339272 Rhinolophidae Bats of Africa Bats of Asia Bats of Europe Vulnerable animals Vulnerable biota of Africa Vulnerable fauna of Asia Vulnerable biota of Europe Mammals described in 1901 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot