107.

Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat

Carollia sowelli

French: Carollia de Sowell / German: Sowell-Kurzschwanzblattnase / Spanish: Carolia de Sowell

Taxonomy. Carollia sowelli R. J. Baker, Solari & F. G. Hoffmann, 2002,

“ Honduras, Comayagua, Cueva de Taulabe, (14°41’42" N, 87°57'07" W).”

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. Gulf slope in E Mexico from San Luis Potosi and N Veracruz to Yucatan Peninsula and S Mexico (Oaxaca and Chiapas) S through Central America to W Panama.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 60-79 mm, tail 7-14 mm, ear 16-21 mm, hindfoot 12-14 mm, forearm 37-42 mm; weight 12-21 g. Sowell’s Short-tailed Batis intermediate in size between the Silky Short-tailed Bat (C. brevicaudum) and Seba’s Short-tailed Bat ( C. perspicillata). Dorsal pelage is tricolored, long, dense, and smooth, almost like that of the Silky Short-tailed Bat, but Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat lacks dark brown tips that would make its medial light band conspicuous. It has hair on forearm but not as abundant as in Seba’s Short-tailed Bat. Its face is more elongated than the Gray Short-tailed Bat (C. subrufa), with round warts in front of lowerlip. Principal difference between Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat and the Silky Shorttailed Bat is based on order of nucleotides in the mitochondrial cytochrome-b.

Habitat. Tropical rainforest and deciduous forests from sea level up to 2400 m. Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat is particularly abundant in early stages of secondary forests and plantations.

Food and Feeding. Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat is frugivorous, but it sometimes eats insects. In Mexico, it feeds primarily from wild figs ( Ficus sp., Moraceae), but it is reported that all species of Carollia eat fruits from species of Piper (Piperaceae), Cecropia (Urticaceae), Vismia (Hypericaceae), and Solanum (Solanaceae) .

Breeding. Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat has a bimodal reproduction pattern. Pregnant and lactating females were found in March—July. Pregnant females also were reported in February—April and July-September.

Activity patterns. Sowell’s Short-tailed Bats roost in caves, hollow trees, rock crevices, and human structures. It has also been reported to roost under banana leaves ( Musa sp.).

Movements, Home range and Social organization. In Mexico, Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat roosted with other species: e.g. Davy’s Naked-backed Bat ( Pteronotus davyi), the Common Mustached Bat (P. parnellii), Peters’s Ghost-faced Bat ( Mormoops megalophylla), the Common Vampire Bat ( Desmodus rotundus), the Mexican Greater Funnel-eared Bat ( Natalus stramineus), Pallas’s Long-tongued Bat ( Glossophaga soricina), and Myotis sp. Female colonies of Sowell’s Short-tailed Bat are separated from male colonies.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red Lust.

Bibliography. Baker et al. (2002), LaVal & Rodriguez-Herrera (2002), Miller et al. (2015b), Pine (1972), Tellez (2014a).