473.

Southern Myotis

Myotis macropus

French: Murin de Gould / German: Australien-Langful 3fledermaus / Spanish: Ratonero de Gould

Other common names: Australian Large-footed Myotis, Gould's Large-footed Myotis

Taxonomy. Vespertilio macropus Gould, 1854,

South Australia .

Subgenus Myotis; horsfieldii species group. See M. ridleyi and M. adversus . Myotis macropus appears to be relative to M. hasselti, M. macrotarsus, M. horsfieldii, and M. muricola based on limited genetic data. Specimens throughout northern and western Australia that were previously identified as M. adversus and M. moluccarum now represent M. macropus . There appear to be two genetic clades in Australia, one in the north and north-east and the other in the west and south-west that likely correspond to subspecies (possibly macropus and richards). Myotis australis, known only from the holotype in New South Wales, is considered a synonym of M. macropus because no other species of Myotis has been confirmed there; it could still represent a vagrant of M. ater or M. muricola . Monotypic.

Distribution. C Papua New Guinea (Yuro) and N, E & SE Australia, from NE Western Australia to Queensland (including Melville, Groote Eylandt, Hinchinbrook, and Fraser Is) and S to Victoria and extreme SE South Australia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 35-50 mm,tail 33—-42- 3 mm, ear 8-9-15- 6 mm, hindfoot 9-9-12- 3 mm, forearm 36-42- 9 mm; weight 5-14- 9 g. Dorsal pelage varies from dark gray to reddish brown; venter is paler. Ears are long and bluntly rounded at tips, with long, straight, slender tragus. Hindfeet are distinctly large, with long digits and long hooked claws; calcar is very long at more than three-fourths the distance from ankle to tip of tail. Baculum is very short (0-81 mm), broad, and spatulated. Skull is larger than in the Maluku Myotis ( M. moluccarum) and the Gray Large-footed Myotis ( M. adversus), but its rostrum is shorter than in the Gray Large-footed Myotis . P° and P, are minute at two-thirds the size of first molars.

Habitat. Well-vegetated areas such as forests rather than clearings, primarily around streams and other permanent waterways, from sea level up to elevations of ¢. 840 m.

Food and Feeding. The Southern Myotis feeds by fishing over water with its hindfeet to catch small fish, prawns, and aquatic insects (e.g. water boatmen, water striders, backswimmers, and whirligig beetles). It forages by flying 15-100 cm above the water and frequently dipping hindfeet into water and running them along the surface. On occasion, a few individuals follow each other while foraging. Southern Myotis typically forage overstill pools of water rather than flowing water, which allows easier detection of prey. They find prey by using echolocation to detect small ripples on the water. While foraging over water, they occasionally forage for small insects, and fecal samples in Northern Australia contained mostly termites, flies, ants, moths, beetles, spiders, cockroaches, and true bugs.

Breeding. Southern Myotis breed 1-2 times/year depending on locality (possibly up to three in Queensland), and males have two peaks in testicular size (April-June and September-November in New South Wales). During breeding, a dominant male establishes a territory and forms a harem of 1-12 females, defending it from other males. Other males roost alone or in small all-male roosts. Females in populations in Victoria have one birth year in November-December; populations in New South Wales reproduce twice a year, giving birth in October and January. Females can still be lactating during the beginning of their second pregnancy, and both pregnancies last c.12 weeks. Females give birth to one young per pregnancy. Young are weaned at c.3—4 weeks old.

Activity patterns. Southern Myotis roost by day in caves, tree hollows, foliage (including clumps of Pandanus, Pandanaceae), mines, tunnels, road culverts, storm drains, and intact nests of fairy martins (Petrochelidon ariel) and under bridges. Their roosts are typically near water sources for foraging. Calls are steep FM sweep, with average start frequency of 80-2 kHz, end frequency of 31-2 kHz, peak frequency of 80-2 kHz, interpulse interval of 5-1 milliseconds, and duration of 5-1 milliseconds (south-eastern Queensland, Australia).

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Southern Myotis commonly roost alone or in groups of less than 15 individuals, but they can be found in colonies of several hundred individuals.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Southern Myotis does not appear to face any major threats. It might be affected by changes in water quality and food availability and local roost disturbance.

Bibliography. Anderson et al. (2006), Barclay et al. (2000), Bickham et al. (2004), Campbell (2009), Campbell et al. (2010), Churchill (2008), Cooper et al. (2001), Dwyer (1970a, 1970b, 1970c), Jones & Rayner (1991), Kitchener, Cooper & Maryanto (1995), Law & Anderson (1999), Law & Urquhart (2000), Lloyd et al. (1999), Loh & Gemmell (1980), Reardon & Thomson (2008), Rhodes & Hall (1997), Richards, Hoye et al. (2008), Thompson & Fenton (1982).