Miller's long-tongued bat

Miller's long-tongued bat
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Chiroptera
Family:	Phyllostomidae
Genus:	Glossophaga
Species:	G. longirostris
Binomial name
Glossophaga longirostris Miller, 1898

Miller's long-tongued bat (Glossophaga longirostris) is a bat species found in northern Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, the Netherlands Antilles and the U.S. Virgin Islands.[1][2]

Taxonomy

Miller's long-tongued bat was described as a new species in 1898 by American zoologist Gerrit Smith Miller Jr.. The holotype had been collected in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta of Colombia by Wilmot W. Brown Jr..[3] Six or seven subspecies are typically recognized.[4]

Description

Glossophaga species are small, with average forearm lengths ranging from 31–42 mm (1.2–1.7 in). Miller's long-tongued bat has a braincase that is equivalent in length to its snout, whereas other members of the genus have a shorter snout relative to the braincase. Its dental formula is 2.1.2.32.1.3.3 for a total of 34 teeth.[4] Males weigh an average of 13.25 g (0.467 oz), while nonpregnant females weigh 12.81 g (0.452 oz).[5]

Biology

Miller's long-tongued bat is nectarivorous, with cacti blossoms as an important food source.[6][5] Two breeding seasons occur annually: December–April and June–October.[4] The litter size is one pup.[6]

Range and habitat

Miller's long-tongued bat is found in the following countries and territories: Colombia, Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, the Netherlands Antilles, Guyana, Brazil, and Ecuador. In the Lesser Antilles its range extends northwards to St. Vincent. They roost in caves, houses, and rock crevices.[4]

References

1. Solari, S. (2018). "Glossophaga longirostris". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T9275A22108249. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T9275A22108249.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
2. Simmons, Nancy B. (2005), "Chiroptera", in Wilson, Don E.; Reeder, DeeAnn M. (eds.), Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.), Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 312–529, ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0, retrieved 13 September 2009
3. Miller, G. S. (1898). Descriptions of five new phyllostome bats. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. pp. 334–337. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
4. Gardner, Alfred. Mammals of South America Volume 1. University of Chicago Press. p. 236-239.
5. Webster, W. D.; Handley, C. O. (1986). "Systematics of Miller's long-tongued bat, Glossophaga longirostris: with descriptions of two new subspecies" (PDF). Occasional Papers the Museum of Texas Tech University. 100.
6. Petit, Sophie (1997). "The Diet and Reproductive Schedules of Leptonycteris curasoae curasoae and Glossophaga longirostris elongata (Chiroptera: Glossophaginae) on Curaçao". Biotropica. 29 (2): 214–223. Bibcode:1997Biotr..29..214P. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.1997.tb00026.x. S2CID 83856061.