The blunt-eared bat or Peruvian crevice-dwelling bat (''Tomopeas ravum'') is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). 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 birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

in the family Molossidae. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

within the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

''Tomopeas'' and subfamily Tomopeatinae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, where it is considered critically endangered. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

Taxonomy and etymology

The classification of the blunt-eared bat has historically been problematic. When it was first described by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. in 1900, it was placed in

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 familie ...

. In 1970, it was proposed that it should be in its own family, due to its intermediate qualities between Vespertilionidae and Molossidae. Taxonomists continued to place it in the vesper bat familyGregorin, R. (2003). Comparative morphology of the tongue in free-tailed bats (Chiroptera, Molossidae). Iheringia. Série Zoologia, 93(2), 213-221. until a 1994 study of their mitochondrial DNA showed that they were better placed in Molossidae.Sudman, P. D., Barkley, L. J., & Hafner, M. S. (1994). Familial affinity of Tomopeas ravus (Chiroptera) based on protein electrophoretic and cytochrome b sequence data. Journal of Mammalogy, 75(2), 365-377. It is now widely recognized as the only member of subfamily Tomopeatinae of family Molossidae.Wilson, D. E., & Reeder, D. M. (Eds.). (2005). Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. JHU Press. There is evidence that it is basal to all other

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

of the Molossidae. Its genus name ''Tomopeas'' is possibly a reference to the Malay word "mops", meaning "bat"; Miller used "mops" in other genera he described, including ''

Eumops ''Eumops'' (mastiff bats or bonneted bats) is a genus of bats in the family Molossidae. A total of 17 species of this genus have been described. The name "Eumops" comes from the Greek prefix "Eu-", meaning "good" or "true," and the Malay language ...

'' and '' Nyctinomops''.Miller, G. S. (1902). Twenty new American bats. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 389-412. ''Ravum'' is

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for tawny.Bostock, P. D. (2013). A Primer of Botanical Latin with Vocabulary.

Description

Their fur is pale yellowish-gray in color, while their flight membranes are dark. Their face and ears are also dark in color. Their ventral fur is lighter than their dorsal fur, and is a creamy buff color. The fur is soft and dense, with individual hairs approximately long. The

uropatagium The patagium (: patagia) is a membranous body part that assists an animal in obtaining lift when gliding or flying. The structure is found in extant and extinct groups of flying and gliding animals including bats, theropod dinosaurs (including b ...

is sparsely furred on both its dorsal and ventral sides. Like other free-tailed bats, the blunt-eared bat has a blunt tragus, a small but defined

antitragus The antitragus is a feature of mammalian ear anatomy. In humans, it is a small Tubercle (anatomy)#Ears, tubercle on the visible part of the ear, the Auricle (anatomy), auricle. The antitragus is located just above the earlobe and points anatomical ...

, tubular nostrils, and fusion of the seventh cervical and first thoracic vertebrae. They are extremely small in size, weighing only . From nose to tail, they are long. Their forearms are long. Males and females are similar in size. Unlike other free-tailed bats, the projection of the tail from the

is very short, with only the last two caudal vertebrae extending past the membrane, measuring long. Their

dental formula Dentition pertains to the development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth. In particular, it is the characteristic arrangement, kind, and number of teeth in a given species at a given age. That is, the number, type, and morpho-physiology ...

is , for a total of 28 teeth. The

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 cal ...

forms a small but distinct lobe, and its keel is narrow and inconspicuous.

Biology

As they are relatively uncommon, not much is known about their biology. Juveniles, lactating females, and lactating females have all been encountered in July and August, suggesting that this is a time of high reproductive activity.Barkley, L.J. 2008. Subfamily Tomopeatinae Miller, 1907. In: Gardner, A.L. (ed.), Mammals of South America. Volume 1. Marsupials, xenarthrans, shrews, and bats, pp. 439-440. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago. They are insectivorous. They have been found to be infected with the

protozoa Protozoa (: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a polyphyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes, either free-living or parasitic, that feed on organic matter such as other microorganisms or organic debris. Historically ...

n endoparasite ''

Eimeria ''Eimeria'' is a genus of apicomplexan parasites that includes various species capable of causing the disease coccidiosis in animals such as cattle, poultry and smaller ruminants including sheep and goats. ''Eimeria'' species are considered to ...

''. A new species of ''Eimeria'' was described from the blunt-eared bat; it was named ''Eimeria tomopea'' in reference to this fact.Duszynski, D. W., & Barkley, L. J. (1985). Eimeria from bats of the world: A new species in Tomopeas ravus from Peru. The Journal of parasitology, 204-208.

Range and habitat

It is endemic to Peru. Its range is restricted to the arid and semiarid regions of Peru's coastal region. They are found from above sea level. During the day, it roosts in the crevices of granite boulders and outcroppings. The crevices they use are small, at only . They possibly prefer crevices that face the west or southwest.Davis, W. B. (1970). Tomopeas ravus Miller (Chiroptera). Journal of Mammalogy, 51(2), 244-247. In 2010, a blunt-eared bat was discovered south of the previous estimated range. This capture was the first time the blunt-eared bat was observed in over thirty years.Zamora, H., Medina, C., Escobar, A., Arteaga, Y., Cadenillas, R., & Velazco, P. M. (2014). New distributional record of the rare endemic Peruvian Tomopeas ravus Miller, 1900 (Chiroptera, Molossidae, Tomopeatinae). A 2013 study suggested that their range might extend into southwest

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

, as the habitat would be similar to where they are found in Peru. So far, there is no evidence to confirm this.

Conservation

It has only been encountered in twelve localities, four of which are less than apart. Its area of occupancy is estimated at less than . In Peru, it is considered critically endangered. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...

assessed it as vulnerable in 1996 and 2008, but revised its classification to

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

in 2016. They identify

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

as the primary threat to this species; its habitat is being lost to agricultural conversion and urbanization. This species is possibly under threat by efforts to control

vampire bat Vampire bats, members of the subfamily Desmodontinae, are Phyllostomidae, leaf-nosed bats currently found in Central and South America. Their food source is the blood of other animals, a dietary trait called hematophagy. Three extant bat species ...

s. Sometimes, entire caves are fumigated, which kills all the bats inside. In 2013, bat researchers reported capturing two individuals with "relatively little sampling effort," causing them to question if the species is actually rare or if it is not encountered due to inappropriate sampling methods.Velazco, P. M., Cadenillas, R., Centty, O., Huamaní, L., & Zamora, H. (2013). New records of Platalina genovensium (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) and Tomopeas ravus (Chiroptera, Molossidae). Mastozoología neotropical, 20(2), 425-434.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q174048, from2=Q17344033, from3=Q3531401 Taxa named by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. Bats of South America Mammals described in 1900 EDGE species Mammals of Peru Molossidae Taxonomy articles created by Polbot