Allen's striped bat (''Glauconycteris alboguttata'') is a species of
bat in the family
Vespertilionidae
Vespertilionidae is a family of microbats, of the order Chiroptera, flying, insect-eating mammals variously described as the common, vesper, or simple nosed bats. The vespertilionid family is the most diverse and widely distributed of bat famili ...
, the vesper bats. It is native to Africa, where it occurs in
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west- central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...
and the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
.
This species can be found in lowland tropical moist forests. Little else is known about it.
Taxonomy and etymology
It was
described in 1917 by American mammalogist
Joel Asaph Allen
Joel Asaph Allen (July 19, 1838 – August 29, 1921) was an American zoologist, mammalogist, and ornithologist. He became the first president of the American Ornithologists' Union, the first curator of birds and mammals at the American Museum of N ...
. 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 seve ...
used to describe the species had been collected by
Herbert Lang
Herbert Lang (March 24, 1879 – May 29, 1957) was a German zoologist.
Lang was born in Oehringen, Württemberg, Germany. His childhood interest in nature led to a job as a taxidermist and later work at the natural history museum at the Universi ...
and
James Chapin
James Paul Chapin (July 9, 1889 – April 5, 1964) was an American ornithologist and curator of the American Museum of Natural History.
Biography
Chapin is one of the highest-regarded ornithologists of the twentieth century. He was joint leade ...
. Chapin and Lang first encountered the species in Medje,
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
.
Its
species name
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bo ...
"''alboguttata''" is from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
"''
albus
Albus may refer to:
* Albus (surname)
* Albinus (cognomen), or Albus, a Latin surname
* Albus (coin), ''groschen'' coin of the Holy Roman Empire
* Albus, a Geomantic figure
* 'Albus', a cultivar of Rosemary
Entertainment
* Albus Dumbledore ...
''" meaning "white" and "''
guttate''" meaning "spotted," likely referring to its white patches of fur.
Description
From head to tail, it is long. Its forearm is approximately long. Unlike
Allen's spotted bat, which is similar in appearance, it does have a
calcar
The calcar, also known as the calcaneum, is the name given to a spur of cartilage arising from inner side of ankle and running along part of outer interfemoral membrane in bats, as well as to a similar spur on the legs of some arthropods.
The ...
. Its fur is
seal brown
Seal brown is a rich dark brown color, resembling the color of the dyed fur from the fur seal.
Usage
The specifications for the U.S. Army Air Corps Type A-2 jacket (regulation summer flying jacket), adopted in 1931 and the most familiar among ...
, with dorsal fur darker than the ventral fur. On each side of its back, it has two white patches of fur, for a total of four white spots. Each shoulder has a white spot, and there is a long, narrow stripe beneath each shoulder spot. Its
propatagium
The patagium (plural: patagia) is a membranous body part that assists an animal in obtaining lift when gliding or flight. The structure is found in extant and extinct groups of flying and gliding animals including bats, birds, some dromaeosaur ...
is whitish, as well as the borders of its wings. The rest of the
flight membranes and its ears are blackish brown.
Range and status
It has been documented in both
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west- central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...
and the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
. However, its range may be larger than currently known, as it is a poorly-documented species.
It is currently evaluated as
least concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. Th ...
by the
IUCN—its lowest conservation priority. While it is considered a rare species, it has a relatively large range and its population is likely large.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1830353
Glauconycteris
Bats of Africa
Taxa named by Joel Asaph Allen
Mammals described in 1917
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot