Monophyllus plethodon luciae, Miller, 1902

G, H H., P, S C., P, C J. & G, L K., 2007, B A, N L A, Occasional Papers of the Museum 270, pp. 1-12 : 3-5

Monophyllus plethodon luciae Miller 1902

Specimens examined (11).— Chalvilles , 1 ( UNSM); cave at the head of Katouche Bay, 1.5 km NE North Hill Village, 7 ( NMNH); “ Apple Hole ” Cavern , 1 km NE North Side Village, 1 ( NMNH); Small Fountain Cave , Little Bay , 1 ( AMNH); Wattices , 1 ( UNSM) .

Miller’s long-tongued bat has been reported from Anguilla by Schwartz and Jones (1967) and Koopman (1968). Schwartz and Jones (1967) in their revision of the genus assigned a single specimen from Anguilla to M. p. luciae, which has a geographic range from Anguilla southward to St. Vincent. Koopman (1968) mentions this specimen from Small Fountain Cave without giving its precise locality. Currently, this species occurs only in the Lesser Antilles, but five fossil specimens of an extinct subspecies (M. p. frater) are known from west of the Anegada Passage on Puerto Rico ( Schwartz and Jones 1967).

Length of forearm and seven cranial measurements for three males and three females are presented in Table 1 . Females averaged smaller than males in all measurements except postorbital constriction where the sexes averaged the same. These differences were significant at P ≤ 0.05 for three of the measurements—zygomatic breadth, mastoid breadth, and breadth across the upper molars.

The cave at the head of Katouche Bay is probably the one known locally as Iguana Cave (see map published by the Government of the United Kingdom for the Government of Anguilla, 1997). This is a simple cave in the rock with two rooms, which were mined for phosphate in the past. A fig tree (probably Ficus citrifolia ) grows through an opening in the cave. Miller’s long-tongued bats were captured in mist nets at the entrance of Iguana Cave as well as Pitch Apple Hole (see description in Brachyphylla account). Individuals from Chalvilles and Wattices were netted as they foraged in an area of pasture with a single large fig tree and in a subsistence garden with a few banana trees, respectively. We have not found the precise location of Small Fountain Cave.

Single females taken on May 21 and October 10 evinced no gross reproductive activity. The testis length of a male taken on May 22 was 4 and for three males taken on October 10 was 4, 4, and 4.5. Weights of three males and a female taken on October 10 were, respectively, 16.0, 16.5, 18.3, and 14.5.

Tables

Table 1.—Length of forearm and cranial measurements of six species of bats occurring on the West Indian island of Anguilla.

Statistics, catalog numbers, and sex	Length of forearm	Greatest length of skull	Condylobasal length	Zygomatic breadth	Postorbital constriction	Mastoid breadth	Length of maxillary toothrow	Breadth across upper molars
Monophyllus plethodon luciae
Males N Mean Range ± SE	3 41.8 (40.3-43.7) ±1.01	3 23.1 (22.6-23.6) ±0.29	3 21.5 (20.8-22.1) ±0.38	3 10.4 (10.1-10.8) ±0.22	3 4.7 (4.5-4.8) ±0.09	3 9.9 (9.7-10.0) ±0.09	3 8.1 (7.9-8.3) ±0.12	3 5.8 (5.6-6.0) ±0.12
Females N Mean Range ± SE	3 40.8 (40.6-41.0) ±0.12	3 22.9 (22.8-22.9) ±0.03	3 21.3 (21.2-21.4) ±0.06	3 9.7 (9.6-9.8) ±0.06	3 4.7 (4.6-4.7) ±0.03	3 9.4 (9.3-9.4) ±0.03	3 8.1 (7.8-8.5) ±0.21	3 5.4 (5.3-5.5) ±0.06
Brachyphylla cavernarum carvernarum
Males N Mean Range ± SE	7 65.9 (64.2-66.8) ±0.47	7 32.1 (31.8-32.5) ±0.09	7 28.5 (28.1-28.9) ±0.10	7 17.5 (17.1-18.0) ±0.11	7 6.4 (6.2-6.6) ±0.05	7 15.0 (14.1-15.5) ±0.16	7 11.0 (10.7-11.2) ±0.06	7 11.7 (11.3-12.3) ±0.14
Females N Mean Range ± SE	4 64.2 (62.7-65.6) ±0.59	4 31.6 (30.5-32.2) ±0.39	4 28.1 (27.3-28.9) ±0.33	4 17.2 (16.4-18.2) ±0.41	4 6.5 (6.3-6.7) ±0.08	4 14.8 (14.2-15.3) ±0.23	4 11.1 (10.8-11.2) ±0.10	4 11.7 (11.2-12.5) ±0.31
Artibeus jamaicensis jamaicensis
Males N Mean Range ± SE	8 59.2 (56.7-62.5) ±0.64	8 28.2 (27.8-29.0) ±0.14	8 25.0 (24.4-25.5) ±0.13	8 16.9 (16.4-17.4) ±0.11	8 7.1 (6.7-7.5) ±0.09	8 14.6 (14.4-15.3) ±0.11	8 9.7 (9.4-10.1) ±0.09	8 12.8 (12.6-13.2) ±0.07
Females N Mean Range ± SE	8 60.3 (58.8-61.3) ±0.30	8 28.2 (27.1-29.1) ±0.20	8 25.0 (24.3-25.8) ±0.16	7 16.8 (16.7-17.1) ±0.09	8 7.1 (6.7-7.5) ±0.10	8 14.7 (14.0-15.1) ±0.12	8 9.9 (9.5-10.3) ±0.08	8 12.5 (12.0-12.8) ±0.10
Natalus stramineus stramineus
Males
AMNH 72368	37.8	16.7	15.0	8.5	3.1	7.5	7.2	5.8
NMNH 544834	40.5	17.0	15.8	8.6	3.1	8.0	7.4	5.7
UNSM 16476	39.9	16.8	15.3	8.4	3.1	7.4	7.2	5.5
Molossus molossus molossus
Males
AMNH 73687	36.5	16.8	14.9	10.5	3.3	9.9	5.6	7.4
UNSM 16486	39.9	17.1	15.1	10.7	3.5	9.9	6.0	7.5
Females
NMNH 544385	39.4	16.2	14.4	10.1	3.3	9.4	5.7	6.9
UNSM 16479	38.2	16.1	14.3	9.9	3.4	9.4	5.7	7.1