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 families, specialised in many forms to occupy a range of habitats and ecological circumstances, and it is frequently observed or the subject of research. The facial features of the species are often simple, as they mainly rely on vocally emitted echolocation. The tails of the species are enclosed by the lower flight membranes between the legs. Over 300 species are distributed all over the world, on every continent except

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. It owes its name to the genus '' Vespertilio'', which takes its name from a word for bat, ', derived from the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

term ' meaning 'evening'; they are termed "evening bats" and were once referred to as "evening birds". (The term "evening bat" also often refers more specifically to one of the species, '' Nycticeius humeralis''.)

Evolution

They are allied to the suborder Microchiroptera, the families of microbats separated from the flying foxes and fruit bats of the megabat group Megachiroptera. The treatments of bat taxonomy have also included a placement amongst the

Vespertilioniformes Yangochiroptera, or Vespertilioniformes, is a suborder of Chiroptera that includes most of the microbat families, except the Rhinopomatidae, Rhinolophidae, Hipposideridae, Craseonycteridae and Megadermatidae. These other families, plus the megaba ...

, or Yangochiroptera, as suborder Vespertilionoidea. Molecular data indicate the Vespertilionidae diverged from the Molossidae in the

early Eocene In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age (geology), age or lowest stage (stratigraphy), stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by th ...

period. The family is thought to have originated somewhere in

Laurasia Laurasia () was the more northern of two large landmasses that formed part of the Pangaea supercontinent from around ( Mya), the other being Gondwana. It separated from Gondwana (beginning in the late Triassic period) during the breakup of Pa ...

, possibly North America. A recently extinct species, '' Synemporion keana'', is known from the

Holocene The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

.Discovery of Extinct Bat Doubles Diversity of Native Hawaiian Land Mammals
at the American Museum of Natural History; published March 21, 2016; retrieved June 20, 2016

Characteristics

All species are carnivorous and most are

insectivore file:Common brown robberfly with prey.jpg, A Asilidae, robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivore, carnivorous animal or plant which eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the Entomophagy ...

s. Exceptions are bats of genera '' Myotis'' and '' Pizonyx'' that catch

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

and the larger '' Nyctalus'' species known to capture small

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped') which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their ...

birds in flight. The

dentition 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-physiology ...

of the family varies between species; the dental formula of the family is: They rely mainly on echolocation to navigate and obtain food, but they lack the elaborate nose appendages of microbats that focus nasal emitted

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...

. The ultrasound signal is usually produced orally, and many species have large external ears to capture and reflect sound, enabling them to discriminate and extract information. The vespertilionids employ a range of flight techniques. The wing surface is extended to the lower limbs, and the tails of this family are enclosed in an interfemoral membrane. Some are relatively slow-flying genera, such as '' Pipistrellus'', that manipulate the configuration of their broader wing shape and may give a fluttery appearance as they forage and glean. Others are specialised as long-winged genera, such as '' Lasiurus'' and '' Nyctalus'', that use rapid pursuit to capture insects. The size range of the family is in head and body length; this excludes the tail, which is itself quite long in many species. They are generally brown or grey in colour, often an indiscriminate appearance as a 'little brown bat', although some species have fur that is brightly colored, with reds, oranges, and yellows all being known. The patterns of the superficial appearance include white patches or stripes that may distinguish some species. Most species roost in caves, although some make use of hollow trees, rocky crevices, animal

burrow file:Chipmunk-burrow (exits).jpg, An eastern chipmunk at the entrance of its burrow A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to construct a space suitable for habitation or temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of Animal lo ...

s, or other forms of shelter. Colony sizes also vary greatly, with some roosting alone, and others in groups up to a million individuals. Species native to

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

latitudes typically hibernate to avoid cooler weather, while a few of the

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

species employ aestivation as a method of evading extremes of climate.

Systematics

The four subfamilies of Vespertilionidae separate the presumably related taxa, tribes, and genera of extant and extinct taxa. The subfamilial treatments, based on morphological, geographical, and ecological comparisons have been recombined since the inclusion of the phylogenetic implications of

molecular genetics Molecular genetics is a branch of biology that addresses how differences in the structures or expression of DNA molecules manifests as variation among organisms. Molecular genetics often applies an "investigative approach" to determine the st ...

; only the Murininae and Kerivoulinae have not been changed in light of genetic analysis. Subfamilies that were once recognized as valid, such as the Nyctophilinae, are considered dubious, as molecular evidence suggests they are

paraphyletic Paraphyly is a taxonomic term describing a grouping that consists of the grouping's last common ancestor and some but not all of its descendant lineages. The grouping is said to be paraphyletic ''with respect to'' the excluded subgroups. In co ...

in their arrangements. Within the concept Yangochiroptera, an acknowledged cladistic treatment, the closest relatives to the family are the free-tailed bats of family Molossidae. The monotypic genus ''Tomopeas'', represented by the blunt-eared bat ('' Tomopeas ravum''), is acknowledged as the potentially closest link between the Vespertilionidae and Molossidae, as it is the most basal member of the Molossidae and has intermediate characteristics of both families.

Classification

The grouping of these subfamilies is the classification published by the American Society of Mammalogists. Other authorities raise three subfamilies more: Antrozoinae (which is here the separate family of pallid bats), Tomopeatinae (now regarded as a subfamily of the

free-tailed bat The Molossidae, or free-tailed bats, are a family of bats within the order Chiroptera. The Molossidae is the fourth-largest family of bats, containing about 110 species as of 2012. They are generally quite robust, and consist of many strong-fly ...

s), and Nyctophilinae (here included in Vespertilioninae). Four subfamilies are recognized by ''

Mammal Species of the World ''Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference'' is a standard reference work in mammalogy giving descriptions and Bibliographic database, bibliographic data for the known species of mammals. It is now in its third edition, ...

'' (2005), the highly diverse Vespertilioninae are also separated as tribes. Newer or resurrected genera are noted. The genus '' Cistugo'' is no longer included following its move to the separate family Cistugidae. Miniopterinae is additionally no longer recognized as a subfamily, as it was elevated to family status. A 2021 study attempted to resolve the systematic relationships among the pipistrelle-like bats of sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar, with systematic inferences based on genetic and morphological analyses of more than 400 individuals across all named genera and the majority of described African pipistrelle-like bat species, with a focus on previously unstudied samples of East African bats. The study proposed a revision of the pipistrelle-like bats in East Africa and described multiple new genera and species. Family Vespertilionidae * subfamily Kerivoulinae ::* genus '' Kerivoula'' – painted bats ::* genus '' Phoniscus'' *subfamily Myotinae ::* genus '' Eudiscopus'' ::*genus '' Myotis'' – mouse-eared bats ::* genus '' Submyotodon'' – broad-muzzled bats * subfamily Murininae ::* genus '' Harpiocephalus'' – hairy-winged bats ::* genus '' Harpiola'' ::* genus '' Murina'' – tube-nosed insectivorous bats * subfamily Vespertilioninae ** tribe Antrozoini ***genus '' Antrozous'' ***genus '' Bauerus'' ***genus '' Rhogeessa'' **tribe Eptesicini *** genus '' Arielulus'' *** genus '' Eptesicus'' – house bats *** genus '' Glauconycteris'' – butterfly bats *** genus '' Hesperoptenus'' – false serotine bats ***genus '' Histiotus'' – big-eared brown bats ***genus '' Ia'' ***genus '' Lasionycteris'' ***genus '' Scoteanax'' – greater broad-nosed bats ***genus '' Scotomanes'' ***genus '' Scotorepens'' – lesser broad-nosed bats ***genus '' Thainycteris'' ** tribe ''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'' ***genus '' Rhyneptesicus'' **tribe Lasiurini *** genus '' Aeorestes'' – hoary bats *** genus '' Dasypterus'' – yellow bats *** genus '' Lasiurus'' – hairy-tailed bats ** tribe Nycticeiini *** genus '' Nycticeius'' – evening bats ** tribe Perimyotini ***genus '' Parastrellus'' *** genus '' Perimyotis''Solari, S. 2018. Perimyotis subflavus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018* e.T17366A22123514. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T17366A22123514.en. Downloaded on 05 March 2019. ** tribe Pipistrellini *** genus '' Glischropus'' – thick-thumbed bats *** genus '' Nyctalus'' – noctule bats *** genus '' Pipistrellus'' – true pipistrelles *** genus '' Scotoecus'' – house bats ***genus '' Scotozous'' ***genus '' Vansonia'' ** tribe Plecotini *** genus '' Barbastella'' – barbastelles or barbastelle bats *** genus '' Corynorhinus'' – American lump-nosed bats *** genus '' Euderma'' *** genus '' Idionycteris'' *** genus '' Otonycteris'' *** genus '' Plecotus'' – lump-nosed bats ** tribe Scotophilini ***genus '' Scotophilus'' – Old World yellow bats **tribe Vespertilionini *** genus '' Afronycteris'' *** genus '' Cassistrellus'' – helmeted bats ***genus '' Chalinolobus'' – wattled bats *** genus '' Falsistrellus'' – false pipistrelles *** genus '' Hypsugo'' – Asian pipistrelles *** genus '' Laephotis'' – long-eared bats *** genus '' Mimetillus'' – mimic bats ***genus '' Mirostrellus'' *** genus '' Neoromicia'' ***genus '' Nycticeinops'' ***genus '' Nyctophilus'' – New Guinean and Australian big-eared bats ***genus '' Pharotis'' *** genus '' Philetor'' *** genus '' Pseudoromicia'' ***genus '' Tylonycteris'' – bamboo bats *** genus '' Vespadelus'' *** genus '' Vespertilio'' – frosted bats

Evolution

Characteristics

Systematics

Classification

References

Further reading