''Mops pusillus'' is a species of
bat in the family
Molossidae. It is found on islands off the coast of east
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.
Taxonomy
This bat was originally considered a distinct species, before being relegated to a synonym of ''
M. pumilus''. However, the presumed Seychelles populations of ''M. pumilus'' were discovered to be smaller than the ones in
Kenya
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and
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
, leading to the resurrection of the name as a distinct species.
Description
The bat has a blackish-brown dorsum, brown throat, and dark brown chest. It has a dark brown venter, with a small white mid-ventral patch in rare cases. Comorian populations of the bat have a distinct whitish or beige strip of hairs at the base of the wings.
There is a possibility of inter-island seasonal variation in reproduction.
Habitat and distribution
The bat is found in the
Comoro Islands
The Comoro Islands or Comoros ( Shikomori ''Komori''; ar, جزر القمر , ''Juzur al-qamar''; french: Les Comores) form an archipelago of volcanic islands situated off the southeastern coast of Africa, to the east of Mozambique and northw ...
and
Seychelles
Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...
.
On Comoros, it was not observed roosting in natural sites, but instead mostly in the attics of public buildings. Moreover, the bats were observed to roost in older-style colonial buildings, but not in modern buildings. Their roosting may also be seasonal, as they have been observed abandoning roosts during the cold season.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q8344469
Bats of Africa
Mammals described in 1902
Taxa named by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr.
Mammals of the Comoros
Mammals of Seychelles
Mops (bat)