''Sturnira perla'' is a species of yellow-shouldered bat found in

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechuan ...

Taxonomy and etymology

It was described as a new species in 2011 by Jarrín and Kunz. The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of seve ...

had been collected in Bosque Protector La Perla in 1990. Its

species name In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bo ...

"''perla''" was chosen both to refer to something "very precious" as well as the globular shape of its skull. Additionally, the species name honors Bosque Protector La Perla, which is where the majority of the specimens used in the original description were found.

Description

Its forearm length is . It is regarded as a

cryptic species In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

, as it is similar in appearance to the little, Louis's, and Tilda's yellow-shouldered bats. Its

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-physiolog ...

is for a total of 32 teeth.

Range and habitat

It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found els ...

. It is found in

lowland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of p ...

habitats of above sea level.

Conservation

As of 2016, it is assessed as

data deficient A data deficient (DD) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as offering insufficient information for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made. This does not necessarily ...

by the IUCN because it is poorly known, and, while it could be severely impacted by

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then land conversion, converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban area, urban ...

, it is also possible that its range could be larger than currently projected.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q16611010 Bats of South America Mammals described in 2011 Sturnira