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Yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by SMJudge (talk | contribs) at 02:42, 13 October 2014 (Added suborder & updated IUCN listing to LRlc; Added other common names; Updated intro and made references consistent with ongoing style; Added sections Description & taxonomy and Distribution & habitat.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Mammalia
Order:
Chiroptera
Suborder:
Microchiroptera
Family:
Emballonuridae
Genus:
Saccolaimus
Species:
S. flaviventris
Binomial name
Saccolaimus flaviventris
Peters, 1867
Yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat range

The yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat[1] (Saccolaimus flaviventris), also known as the yellow-bellied sheathtail or yellow-bellied pouched bat, is a microbat species of the family Emballonuridae that is found extensively in Australia and less commonly in parts of Papua New Guinea [2] [3].

Although found throughout most parts of Australia, very little is known about its ecology due to the small size, nocturnal activity and general elusiveness of most microbat species making them difficult to study [4] [5] [6]. They are sometimes mistaken for the endangered and less widely distributed bare-rumped sheathtail bat where the two species occur sympatrically, as well as other similar Emballonuridae species, but upon inspection are quite distinct and easily identified [7] [4].

At present, the yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat is the only member of Microchiroptera that has been positively identified as a carrier of Australian bat lyssavirus [8].

Description & Taxonomy

The yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat belongs to the suborder Microchiroptera, or insectivorous microbats, and is the largest Australian member of the family Emballonuridae [4]. Emballonuridae is distinguished by a partially membrane enclosed tail that projects into a sheath, hence the descriptive term ‘sheathtail’, and is represented by eight known Australian species [3]. Within Australia, the family is divided into two genera: Taphozous and Saccolaimus, the latter of which the yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat is one of only four known representatives world-wide [9].

The yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat is quite large with a mean body weight of 44 grams that ranges from 27.8-60g, and a mean head-body length of 81.8 millimetres that ranges from 72.3-91.9mm [3] [6]. It has distinct fur colouration, with the dorsal back being a shiny, jet black and the ventral underside a contrasting creamy, white [4] [3]. Males of the species have a distinctive gular throat pouch that is believed to play a role in territorial marking [4] [10] [11]. The throat pouch is absent in females, who instead have naked folds of skin around the throat [10]. Unlike many other sheathtails, this species does not have a wing pouch in either sex [3].

Other distinguishing features of the yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat are a flattened head and sharply pointed muzzle [12], a mean forearm length of 74-77mm [3] [4], and a mean outer canine width of 6.4mm [3].

Distribution & Habitat

The yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat appears to be wide-ranging, occurring across most parts of eastern and northern Australia [13], though in what densities remains uncertain due to the difficulties associated with capture and detection of the species [5] [6]. Much of the distribution understanding of this species has developed as a result of incidental sightings [14] [15], such as one record from central western Queensland that was taken from a mummified bat found on a barbed-wire fence [16]. Though most common throughout the tropical regions of its range [3], yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bats are known to occur regularly in semi-arid environments including the Mallee region of north-western Victoria [14], Gundabooka National Park in north-western New South Wales [15], and central-western Queensland [16]. It is likely that this species migrates into its southerly range during summer, with seasonal records placing bats in most parts of Victoria, south-western New South Wales, and the adjacent regions of South Australia [12]. Though less common, two specimens of yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bats have been found in Papua New Guinea, one in the National Capital District and the other in Central Province [2] [6].

This species occupies most wooded habitats, including both wet and dry sclerophyll forest, Mallee and Acacia shrubland, desert, and open woodland [5] [3]. They are a hollow-roosting species, and so tend to be found within proximity to adequate old growth trees [17].


Footnotes

  1. ^ Van Dyke, S. and Strahan, R. (eds.) (2008) The Mammals of Australia, 3rd Edition, New Holland / Queensland Museum, Brisbane ISBN 978-1-877069-25-3
  2. ^ a b Flannery, T. F. 1995. The Mammals of New Guinea, 2nd edition. Reed Books, Sydney, Australia.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Churchill, Sue. 2008. Australian bats, 2nd ed. Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, NSW.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rhodes, M. P., and Hall, L. S. 1997. Observations on Yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bats Saccoliamus flaviventris (Peters, 1867)(Chiroptera: Emballonuridae). Australian Zoologist 30:351-357.
  5. ^ a b c Reardon, T. B., and Flavel, S. C. 1987. A guide to the bats of South Australia. South Australian Museum.
  6. ^ a b c d Richards, G. C. 2008. Yellow-bellied Sheath-tailed Bat, Saccolaimus flaviventris. In: S. Van Dyck and R. Strahan (eds), The mammals of Australia. Third Edition, pp. 472-473. Reed New Holland, Sydney, Australia.
  7. ^ Schulz, M. and Thomson, B. 2007. National recovery plan for the bare-rumped sheathtail bat Saccolaimus saccolaimus nudicluniatus . Report to Department of the Environment and Water Resources, Canberra. Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, Brisbane.
  8. ^ Barrett, J. L. 2004. Australian Bat Lyssavirus. PhD Thesis, School of Veterinary Science, University of Queensland.
  9. ^ Troughton, E. Le G. 1925. A revision of the genera Taphozous and Saccolaimus (Chiroptera) in Australia and New Guinea, including a new species, and a note on two Malayan forms. Records of the Australian Museum 14:313-341
  10. ^ a b Chimimba, C.T. and Kitchener, D.J. 1987. Breeding in the Australian yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat, Saccolaimus flaviventris (Peters, 1867) (Chiroptera Emballonuridae). Records – Western Australian Museum 13:241-248.
  11. ^ Hall, L. S. and Gordon. G. 1982. The throat-pouch of the yellow-bellied bat, Taphozous flaviventris. Mammalia 46:247-252
  12. ^ a b Yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat – profile, Office of Environment and Heritage, accessed 7th Ocotober 2014, <http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/threatenedspeciesapp/profile.aspx?id=10741>
  13. ^ Dickman, C. R., Pressey, R. L., Lim, L., and Parnaby, H. E. 1993. Mammals of particular conservation concern in the Western Division of New South Wales. Biological Conservation 65:219-248.
  14. ^ a b Lumsden, I. F. and Bennet, A. F. 1995. Bats of a semi-arid environment in south-eastern Australia: biogeography, ecology and conservation. Wildlife Research 22:217-239.
  15. ^ a b Pennay, M. n.d. Ecological study of the endangered bristle-nosed bat (Mormopterus ‘species 6’) and survey of Microchiropteran bats in Gundabooka National Park - Report for NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service Upper Darling Region. NSW Department of Environment & Conservation.
  16. ^ a b Young, R. A. and Ford, G. I. 2000. Bat fauna of a semi-arid environment in central western Queensland, Australia. Wildlife Research 27:203-215.
  17. ^ Hall, L. S. and Richards, G. C. 1979. Bats of eastern Australia. Queensland Museum, Brisbane.

References

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