257.

Greater Red Bat

Lasiurus atratus

French: Lasiure deuil / German: Gro 3e Haarschwanzfledermaus / Spanish: Lasiuro gigante

Other common names: Handley’s Red Bat

Taxonomy. Lasiurus atratus Handley, 1996,

“Kaiserberg Airport, Zuid River, Suriname.”

See L. egregius . Lasiurus atratus is in the Red Bat group. Monotypic.

Distribution. E Venezuela and the Guianas.

Descriptive notes. Head-body ¢. 59 mm, tail 53-57 mm, ear c. 13 mm, hindfoot 11-13 mm, forearm 45-1-47- 6 mm. Dorsum is bright rufous red; hairs are tricolored, with black bases, buffy middles, and red distal bands; hairs are not washed with black or white. Ventral hairs are tricolored, with black bases, pale or brown middles, and black tips washed with white. Throat, chest, and belly are contrasting black and white or brown and white. There is a prominent white humeral spot. Face is black, chin is reddish, and ears are tan. Wing membranes are black. Uropatagium is densely furred, with hairs extending to or next to free margin. Rostrum is broad, very short, and shallow, with sharp downslope anteriorly. Braincase is large and rounded; sagittal crest is low; lambdoidal crests are poorly developed; exoccipital process is slightly attenuated; antorbital pit is small; lacrimal process is obsolete; mastoid process is well developed; median anterior mesopterygoid process is small; and basisphenoid pits are obsolete. P*is reduced and placed on lingual side, and upper molarsare large. Dental formulais1 1/3. C 1/1, P 2/2. M 3/3 (x2) = 32.

Habitat. Tropical humid forests, deciduous tropical forests, and disturbed secondary forests at elevations of 100-278 m. The Grater Red Bat has been captured in the canopy, over a road, over a small stream between forest and plantation, and over pools alongside a road.

Food and Feeding. The Grater Red Bat eats aerial insects.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The Grater Red Bat might roost in hollow trees. Echolocation calls last ¢.7-1 milliseconds, with narrowband and single harmonic, and sweep from c.b2 kHz toc.34 kHz.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Nevertheless, the Grater Red Bat is rare and known from only 20 specimens.

Bibliography. Baird et al. (2015), Collen (2012), Gardner & Handley (2008), Handley (1996), Lim, B.K. et al. (1999), Novaes, Garbino et al. (2018), Simmons (2005), Solari (2019a).