Socotran Pipistrelle
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The Socotran pipistrelle or Lanza's pipistrelle (''Hypsugo lanzai'') is an
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 ...
species of
vesper bat 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 famili ...
in the family Vespertilionidae. 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 ...
to
Socotra Island Socotra, locally known as Saqatri, is a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. Situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea, it lies near major shipping routes. Socotra is the largest of the six islands in the Socotra archipelago as ...
in
Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
, and is the only mammal thought to be endemic to the island.


Taxonomy

Previously thought to represent an insular population of the desert pipistrelle (''H. ariel''), a 2011 study found it to be morphologically distinct from other ''
Hypsugo The genus ''Hypsugo'' contains many bats referred to as pipistrelles or pipistrelle bats (not to be confused with the genus ''Pipistrellus''). They belong to the family Vespertilionidae or vesper bats. They are primarily found throughout Asia, th ...
'' species, and described it as a distinct species. It is named after Italian biologist
Benedetto Lanza Benedetto Lanza (May 24, 1924, Florence – March 10, 2016, Florence) was an Italian herpetologist and chiropterologist. He published over 500 works, with the first one being published in 1946. He described 68 new taxa. He was Professor of Biology ...
. It is recognized as a distinct species by the
IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...
,
American Society of Mammalogists The American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) was founded in 1919. Its primary purpose is to encourage the study of mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence ...
, and
ITIS 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 ...
.


Distribution and habitat

It is found only on
Socotra Socotra, locally known as Saqatri, is a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. Situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea, it lies near major shipping routes. Socotra is the largest of the six islands in the Socotra archipelago as ...
, where it is found throughout at all altitudes. It inhabits sparse, dry
xeric shrubland Deserts and xeric shrublands are a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Deserts and xeric (Ancient Greek 'dry') shrublands form the largest terrestrial biome, covering 19% of Earth's land surface area. Ecoregions in this habitat ...
habitat.


Description

It is the largest member of the ''arabicus''-group of ''
Hypsugo The genus ''Hypsugo'' contains many bats referred to as pipistrelles or pipistrelle bats (not to be confused with the genus ''Pipistrellus''). They belong to the family Vespertilionidae or vesper bats. They are primarily found throughout Asia, th ...
'' (also including ''H. ariel'' and the Arabian pipistrelle, ''H. arabicus''). Its
braincase In human anatomy, the neurocranium, also known as the braincase, brainpan, brain-pan, or brainbox, is the upper and back part of the skull, which forms a protective case around the brain. In the human skull, the neurocranium includes the calv ...
is higher compared to the other species in the group. It is also much darker in coloration than other members of the group.


Status

This species has a restricted range, being found only on a single island. It is thought to be threatened by
climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
, primarily due to more frequent major
tropical cyclones A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...
(with the
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
and
2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
cyclone seasons being thought to have been especially damaging), as well as increasing
aridification Aridification is the process of a region becoming increasingly arid, or dry. It refers to long term change, rather than seasonal variation. It is often measured as the reduction of average soil moisture content. It can be caused by reduced preci ...
of its habitat. It is also thought to be threatened by increasing unplanned development in the area, which may have further knock-on effects on the already-stressed ecosystem.


References

{{taxonbar, from=Q3788010 Hypsugo Endemic fauna of Socotra Bats of the Arabian Peninsula Mammals described in 2011