''Casinycteris'' (Short-palated bat) is a genus of

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 ...

s described in 1910. It currently consists of three species: * Short-palated fruit bat (''Casinycteris argynnis'') * Campo-Ma’an fruit bat (''Casinycteris campomaanensis'') *

Pohle's fruit bat Pohle's fruit bat (''Casinycteris ophiodon'') is a near threatened species of megabat found in the subtropical and tropical forests of Cameroon, the Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Liberia. Taxonomy In 2014, its taxonomy was revise ...

(''Casinycteris ophiodon'') Previously, the genus ''Casinycteris'' was thought to be

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 ...

, with only the short-palated fruit bat as a member. In 2014 however, a new species (''C. campomaanensis'') was described and added to the genus. In the same paper, they recommended that the

move from ''

Scotonycteris Zenker's fruit bat or Tear-drop bat (''Scotonycteris zenkeri'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. Its natural habitats are tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and swamps. Description This very small fruit bat is di ...

'' to ''Casinycteris''.Hassanin, A. (2014). Description of a new bat species of the tribe Scotonycterini (Chiroptera, Pteropodidae) from southwestern Cameroon. Comptes Rendus Biologies, 337(2), 134-142. ''Casinycteris'' species can be identified by the greenish skin on their

snout A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. In many animals, the structure is called a muzzle, Rostrum (anatomy), rostrum, beak or proboscis. The wet furless surface around the nostrils of the n ...

s and eyelids and yellowish finger joints. ''Casinycteris'' is often compared to ''Scotonycteris'' in appearance, but certain features in living ''Casinycteris'' bats such as their upturned rostrum and larger ears distinguish the genera. The genera also differ internally, with ''Casinycteris'' bats possessing a very shortened

palate The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sep ...

and a different dental structure. The similarities between the genera are attributed to their similar habitat, and differences are attributed to a dissimilar diet or feeding mechanism.

References

Bat genera Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{fruit-bat-stub