The Luzon fruit bat (''Otopteropus cartilagonodus'') is a species of

megabat Megabats constitute the family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera ( bats). They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genera ''Acerodon'' and '' Pteropus''— flying foxes. They are the only member of the s ...

in the family Pteropodidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Otopteropus'' and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forest.

Description

The Luzon fruit bat, a member of the order

Chiroptera 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 bir ...

, is a small bat that is common to

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

island.Roberts, Trina E. Divergence, diversity, distance, and disequilibrium: comparative phylogeography of six Philippine fruit bats (Chiroptera; Pteropodidae). Diss. University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine, Committee on Evolutionary Biology, 2005. It exhibits dark blackish brown coloration, with a lighter color appearing on the abdominal area, usually grey.Heideman, Paul D., Jennifer A. Cummings, and Lawrence R. Heaney. "Reproductive timing and early embryonic development in an Old World fruit bat, ''Otopteropus cartilagonodus'' (Megachiroptera)." Journal of mammalogy 74.3 (1993): 621-630. It is nocturnal and has rather large eyes, especially for its small stature. Luzon Fruit bats are identifiable by their ears, which are marked by red thickenings.Heaney, Lawrence R. "Synopsis of the mammalian fauna of the Philippine Islands." (1998). The species exhibits

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most an ...

in their cranial characters, particularly the skull.Rickart, Eric A., Jennifer A. Mercier, and Lawrence R. Heaney.
Cytogeography of Philippine bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera)
" Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 112.3 (1999): 453-469. The overall size of the skull is found to be larger in males, but females have a more heightened braincase. Because of this, the females have a longer total body length, while both sexes have similar wing bone length.

Ecology

Distribution and habitat

The Philippine Islands have wide fauna diversity. Under the order Chiroptera, the island is home to 73 species, 36 genera, and 6 families. Luzon Fruit Bats are one of two species in the family Pteropodidae that have undergone radiation in Southeast Asia. The Luzon Fruit Bat is restricted to Luzon Island, found on the Philippine archipelago.Alviola, Phillip A., et al. "Chapter 2: mammalian diversity patterns on Mount Palali, Caraballo Mountains, Luzon." Fieldiana Life and Earth Sciences(2011): 61-74. They occupy three different regions on this island: the Cordillera Central Mountains, the Sierra Madre Mountains, and the Zambales Mountains.Ruedas, L. A., J. R. Demboski, and R. V. Sison. "Morphological and ecological variation in ''Otopteropus cartilagonodus'' Kock, 1969 (Mammalia: Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) from Luzon, Philippines." Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 107.1 (1994): 1-16. It has been hypothesized that these three clades diverged from one another around 1.91 million years ago. The Luzon fruit bats are more abundant in montane

primary forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...

. But they have spread to well-developed secondary forest, as well as lowland, montane, and mossy forests. Their distribution is found in an elevation range from 200 – 2250 meters (Heaney et al. 1998), but regions of middle elevation is preferred. Because of their high elevation location, they are listed as a Least Concern.

Diet

It is frugivorous; its diet consists mainly of fruit or nectar. In their consumption of fruit, they help contribute to natural reforestation by dispersing seeds. Due to a difference in cranial size, males and females tend to have different food preferences, based on what is most accessible to their body shape.

Behavior

Reproduction

Females have a long duplex uterus that is superficially joined at the cervix. These bats produce one or two young per year. And the distribution of embryo between the left and right uteri are relatively equal and no preference has been observed. Research has concluded that females undergo delayed implantation, although the specific length of delay is unknown. Male members of the order Chiroptera have a wide morphological variation of primary reproductive structures.Beguelini, Mateus R., et al.
Morphological variation of primary reproductive structures in males of five families of neotropical bats
" The Anatomical Record 296.1 (2013): 156-167. Male Luzon fruit bats are no exception, as they display a form of migratory testes, in which their testes are located in the abdomen. Additionally, these male bats have few spermatozoa in both their testes and epididymis, indicating that much of the sperm in not fully mature.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q610050 Megabats Bats of Asia Mammals of the Philippines Endemic fauna of the Philippines Fauna of Luzon Mammals described in 1969 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot