Eonycteris major K. Andersen 1910

FAISAL ALI ANWARALI KHAN, VICKI J. SWIER, SERGIO SOLARI, PETER A. LARSEN, BESAR KETOL, WAHAP MARNI, SIVANATHAN ELLAGUPILLAY, MAKLARIN LAKIM, MOHAMMAD TAJUDDIN ABDULLAH & ROBERT J. BAKER, 2008, USING GENETICS AND MORPHOLOGY TO EXAMINE SPECIES DIVERSITY OF OLD WORLD BATS: REPORT OF A RECENT COLLECTION FROM MALAYSIA, Occasional Papers of the Museum 281, pp. 1-30 : 7

Eonycteris major K. Andersen 1910

Greater Dawn Bat (Cecadu Gua Besar )

S p e c i m e n s e x a m i n e d (4).— Kubah NP: TTU108327 (GenBank EU521600 ); Mt. Penrisen: TTU 108371, TTU 108372, TTU 108410 .

Type locality.— Malaysia (Borneo), Sarawak, Mount Dulit.

Malaysian distribution.— Eonycteris major is endemic to Borneo.

Remarks.—The genus Eonycteris is distinguished from all other fruit bats by the lack of a claw on the second digit of the wing. We caught Eonycteris major at Kubah NP in a net placed in front of a banana tree, and in Mt. Penrisen this species was caught at the edge of a steep cliff where bats were flying near stands of banana trees. This species is the largest nectar-feeding bat in Malaysia, with a long muzzle that is slender and curved. Eonycteris major also has an enlarged gland near the anus. Forearm length distinguishes E. major (71-80 mm) from the smaller E. spelaea (62-70 mm; Payne et al. 1985). Both of these species roost in limestone caves (SAMD database). Low cyt- b genetic distance (0.1%) was observed among Bornean individuals. A specimen, TTU 108410 (18 August 2006; Mt. Penrisen), was carrying earwigs (Scizochelisoches sp.; Fig. 2) on its dorsum near the base of the tail. This is the first record for earwigs on this bat species. Specimens of these earwigs are housed in the NSRL.