The pygmy fruit bat (''Aethalops alecto''), also known as the grey fruit bat, is a species of

megabat Megabats constitute the Family (biology), family Pteropodidae of the Order (biology), order Chiroptera. They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genus, genera ''Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus''—Pteropus, flyin ...

Distribution

Three specimens were collected in April 1995 from Bario highlands in

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

. ''A. alecto'' is confined to montane forest above 1000 m from Peninsular

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

and

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

. In

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

it had been recorded at

Mount Kinabalu Mount Kinabalu ( Dusun: ''Gayo Ngaran'' or ''Nulu Nabalu'', ) is the highest mountain in Malaysia and Borneo. With a height of , it is the third-highest peak of an island on Earth, the 28th highest peak in Southeast Asia, and 20th most prom ...

and Crocker Range in

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

; Gunung Mulu and Bareo in Sarawak (Payne et al. 1985 ).

Biology and ecology

Two adult females and an adult male collected from Bario were in a non-reproductive condition. Kitchener et al. (1990) reported a pregnant female collected on Lombok Island in October. Hill (1961) observed pregnancy in February and May in Peninsular Malaysia. Medway (1978) recorded that the months between February and June was the breeding period for the species. This species appears to be confined to montane forest above 1,000 m (Payne et al. 1985).

External measurements

*3 samples. FA = 43.70–48.00, TL = none, EL = 10.00–12.00, TB = 15.30–17.00, WT = 12.00–18.00. Measurements are referenced from Diaz. Measurements are without scale, but can only be millimeters. FA = Forearm Length, TL = Tail Length, EL = Ear Length, HFL = Hind Foot Length, TB is not described, and WT = usually W, is weight in grams. Further measurements are referenced according to Barquez. Measurements are referenced as GLS = Greater Length of Skull, Condylobasal Length (CBL), Least Interorbital Breadth (LIB), Zygomatic Breadth (ZB), Postorbital Constriction (PC), Breadth of Braincase (BB), Length of Maxillary Toothrow (LMxT), Palatial Length (PL), Mastoid Breadth (MB), Length of Mandibular Toothrow (LMdT), Length of Mandible (LM), Width across Upper Canines (CC), and Width across Upper Molars (MM).

References

* Hall LS, Gordon G. Grigg, Craig Moritz, Besar Ketol, Isa Sait, Wahab Marni and M.T. Abdullah. 2004. Biogeography of fruit bats in Southeast Asia. Sarawak Museum Journal LX(81):191–284 * Karim, C., A.A. Tuen and M.T. Abdullah. 2004. Mammals. Sarawak Museum Journal Special Issue No. 6. 80: 221–234. * Mohd. Azlan J., Ibnu Maryanto, Agus P. Kartono and M.T. Abdullah. 2003 Diversity, Relative Abundance and Conservation of Chiropterans in Kayan Mentarang National Park, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Sarawak Museum Journal 79: 251–265. * Hall LS, Richards GC, Abdullah MT. 2002. The bats of Niah National Park, Sarawak. Sarawak Museum Journal. 78: 255–282.
Bat World SanctuaryBat Conservation InternationalITIS
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1764732 Aethalops Bats of Southeast Asia Bats of Indonesia Bats of Malaysia Bats of Borneo Fauna of Java Fauna of Sumatra Sarawak Least concern biota of Asia Mammals described in 1923 Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas