The Pomona roundleaf bat, Pomona leaf-nosed bat, or Andersen's leaf-nosed bat (''Hipposideros pomona'') is a species 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 ...

in the family

Hipposideridae The Hipposideridae are a family (biology), family of bats commonly known as the Old World leaf-nosed bats. While it has often been seen as a subfamily, Hipposiderinae, of the family Rhinolophidae, it is now more generally classified as its own fa ...

that is endemic to India.

Taxonomy

It was described as a new species in 1918 by Danish mammalogist Knud Andersen. The

holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...

had been collected in what was then the

Coorg Province Coorg Province was a province of British India from 1834 to 1947 and the Dominion of India from 1947 to 1950. Mercara was the capital of the province. It was administered by a Commissioner and later, Chief Commissioner appointed by the Govern ...

of India by G. C. Shortridge. The Vietnam leaf-nosed bat, ''Paracoelops megalotis'', formerly known as its own species based on one specimen, is now recognized as

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

with the pomona roundleaf bat. In 2012, researchers determined that all the features of ''P. megalotis'' match the pomona roundleaf bat. Their skulls and teeth were identical, and the ''P. megalotis'' specimen is indistinguishable from pomona roundleaf bat individuals. The

Integrated Taxonomic Information System The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagenc ...

, responsible for managing taxonomy of species, no longer recognizes ''Paracoelops'' as a valid genus nor ''P. megalotis'' as a valid species.

Description

Its forearm length is approximately .

Range and status

Some authors recognize ''H. gentilis'' as a species rather than as a subspecies of ''H. pomona''. If ''H. gentilis'' is not included, ''H. pomona'' has a greatly restricted range, occurring in only 8–10 roosts in a area. As of 2020, it is evaluated as an

endangered species 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 ...

by the

IUCN 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 status ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1761748 Hipposideros Bats of Asia Bats of South Asia Mammals described in 1918 Taxa named by Knud Andersen Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Bats of India