406.

Montane Myotis

Myotis oxyotus

French: Murin a oreilles effilées / German: Gebirgsmausohr / Spanish: Ratonero montano

Taxonomy. Vespertilio oxyotus Peters, 1866,

“ Chimborazo, in einer Hohe von 9 bis 10,000 Fuss,” Chimborazo, Ecuador. Base on neotype selection, restricted by R. K. LaVal in 1973 to “Gruta Rumichaca, 2 mi E La Paz, Carchi, Ecuador, elevation 2600 m.”

Subgenus Pizonyx; albescens species group. Myotis oxyotus was considered a subspecies of M. chiloensis, but studies based on morphology and molecular data indicate clear distinction between the two. Studies of molecular data indicated that subspecies gardneri might be a distinct species. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution. M.o.oxyotusPeters,1866—fromColombiaandVenezuelaStoEcuador,Peru,BoliviaandNArgentina.

M. o. gardneri LaVal, 1973 — Cordillera Central of Costa Rica and Cordillera de Talamanca of Costa Rica and Panama.

Descriptive notes. Head-body c¢.40 53 mm, tail 41-46 mm, ear 12-19 mm, hindfoot 6-9 mm, forearm 36-9-43- 4 mm; weight 4-7 g. Fur is long (dorsal fur 7-10 mm; ventral fur 5-7 mm) and woolly. Dorsal hairs are mummy brown, with bases sometimes darker than tips, but dorsal fur generally appears unicolored. Ventral hairs are strongly bicolored, with blackish bases and pale pinkish buff to Dresden brown tips. Ears are medium-sized, extending forward halfway from eye to nostril. Antitragal notch is barely evident. Membranes are mummy brown orslightly darker; plagiopatagium 1s broadly attached to foot at base of toes; uropatagium lacks fringe of hairs. Skull is large (greatest length of skull 14-1-16- 1 mm). Frontals are steeply sloping; sagittal crest is usually absent, but when present,it is always very low; lambdoidal crests are low and weakly developed; parietals are inclined forward; and occipital region is always rounded and projects behind posterior surfaces of occipital condyles; and P? is generally aligned in tooth row and visible in labial view. Bacula are 0-64- 0-82 mm long, 0-22- 0-35 mm deep, and 0-38- 0-46 mm wide, and specimens from South America are substantially larger. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 44 and FN = 50. X-chromosome is large submetacentric, and Y-chromosome is small acrocentric.

Habitat. Highland forests, including wet montane forests, at elevations of 1500-3450 m (rarely below 1000 m).

Food and Feeding. The Montane Myotis is insectivorous and forages within forested areas and over water.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Montane Myotis is widespread and tolerates habitat alterations by humans.

Bibliography. Chaverri et al. (2016), LaVal (1973b), Miller & Allen (1928), Moratelli et al. (2013), Solari (2018m), Trouessart (1904), Urquizo et al. (2017), Wilson (2008b).