The trident bat or trident leaf-nosed bat (''Asellia tridens'') is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae. It is widely distributed in the Middle East, South and Central Asia, and North, East, and Central Africa. Its natural habitats are

subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Geographical z ...

or tropical dry forests, dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...

, caves and hot deserts.

Description

Individuals weigh and have forearm lengths of approximately .

Taxonomy

The trident bat was described as a new species in 1813 by French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. Geoffroy placed it in the genus '' Rhinolophus'', with a scientific name of ''Rhinolophus tridens''.

Biology

After a gestation length of 10 weeks, females give birth in a three-week period in the end of June and beginning of July. The litter size for each female is one offspring, called a pup. Pups are relatively large at birth, weighing up to 30% of their mothers' weights (). Though hairless at birth with closed eyes, a sign of altricial offspring, their eyes open by three or four days old, and fur has started growing. For the first two or three days of life, the pup is latched to its mother's pubic nipple at all times. At three or four days old, mothers leave their pups at the roost at night so they can forage. Pups become volant (able to fly) at around three weeks old, and are totally weaned and independent by six or seven weeks old. Its predators include birds of prey such as the sooty falcon, lanner falcon,

barn owl The barn owl (''Tyto alba'') is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds, being found almost everywhere except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalaya ...

, Pharaoh eagle-owl, spotted eagle-owl, and Long-eared owl.

Conservation

As of 2017, the trident bat is evaluated as a least-concern species by the

IUCN 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 ...

. It meets the criteria for this classification due to its wide geographic range; presumably large population size; and the fact that it is not likely to be experiencing rapid population decline. Its range presumably encompasses several

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q305213 Asellia Mammals of Pakistan Mammals described in 1813 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire Bats of Africa Bats of Asia