Greater short-nosed fruit bat

Species of bat

Greater short-nosed fruit bat
Hanging over foliage palm in Mangaon, Maharashtra
Conservation status

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Chiroptera
Family: Pteropodidae
Genus: Cynopterus
Species:
C. sphinx
Binomial name
Cynopterus sphinx
(Vahl, 1797)
Greater short-nosed fruit bat range

The greater short-nosed fruit bat (Cynopterus sphinx), or short-nosed Indian fruit bat, is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae found in South and Southeast Asia.

Description

These bats have a relatively long snout. Their upper parts are brown to grey-brown with paler under parts. The fur is very fine and silky. The ears and wing bones of C. sphinx are edged in white. Lower cheek teeth rounded without accessory cusps. The wingspan of the adult is about 48 cm (19 in). Juveniles are lighter than adults. Average forearm length is 70.2 mm (2.76 in), with a range of 64–79 mm (2.5–3.1 in).[2]

Habitat

C. sphinx bats perching in a palm tree.

The greater short-nosed fruit bat is found from Pakistan to Vietnam. It is common in tropical forests and areas where fruit crops are cultivated. They can also be found in grasslands and mangrove forests. They typically nest high in palm trees. The bats chew the fronds of the palms to construct fairly simple tents. These bats are also known to construct tents by closely interweaving the leaves and twigs of creeping vines which cover buildings, but such nests are constructed only when palms are not available.

Behaviour and breeding

The greater short-nosed fruit bat is gregarious, and typically roosts in same-sex groups of eight to nine individuals. The sexes remain separate until the mating season, when group size increases. They are polygynous and 6–10 males and 10–15 females usually share palm-frond tents during the breeding season.[3] They are known to perform fellatio, which enhances copulation time in the species. Copulation by males is dorsoventral and the females lick the shaft or the base of the male's penis, but not the glans which has already penetrated the vagina. While the females do this, the penis is not withdrawn and research has shown a positive relationship between length of the time that the penis is licked and the duration of copulation. Postcopulation genital grooming has also been observed.[4] Males stay with females for some time after mating, but later return to same-sex groups.

Female bats perform fellatio to increase copulation time.[4]

The adult sex ratio is very female biased. Researchers attribute this to the relatively rapid maturation of females compared to males. In Central India, C. sphinx breeds twice per year. Females produce a single young at a time. Each half of the bicornate uterus functions during alternate breeding cycles. The first pregnancy cycle occurs from October through February/March. Mating occurs immediately post partum, and a second offspring is born in July. Gestation period is about 3–5 months. In 72% of bats, the first pregnancy occurs in the right horn of the uterus. The corpus luteum in the right ovary persists for some time after the pregnancy and prevents ovulation from occurring in the right ovary during the second breeding cycle. This creates the pattern of alternate functioning of the two horns of the uterus. However, the corpus luteum in the left ovary does not persist until the beginning of the next breeding cycle. As yet, no reason has been found for the dominance of the right horn during the first breeding cycle.[5][6] Newborn bats weigh about 13.5 g (0.48 oz) and have a wingspan of 24 cm (9.4 in). By the time of weaning at 4 weeks of age, young bats weigh 25 g (0.88 oz) and have wings spanning 36 cm (14 in). Female short-nosed fruit bats reach sexual maturity at 5–6 months of age, but males are not capable of breeding until they are a year old.[7]

These bats are frugivorous, and locate their preferred food items by scent. They have been described as voracious feeders, eating more than their body weight in food in one sitting. Some preferred fruits include ripe guava, banana, chikoo, dates, and lychees.

Short-nosed fruit bats inflict serious damage on many fruit crops, and are considered pests. In addition, these bats are possible vectors for Japanese encephalitis, which is serious disease in humans.[8] These bats are important dispersers of date palm seeds, and pollinate many night blooming flowers.

They are also known to construct shelter tents by severing leaves and stems from certain creepers and mast trees like Polyalthia longifolia.[9]

Frugivory, nectarivory, and folivory are well understood; in addition, geophagy behaviour has also been reported in this species recently, and is suggested to represent an ‘adaptive behavioural plasticity’ in the foraging behaviour of the greater short-nosed fruit bat. According to Mahandran et al.[10] geophagy have the function of mineral supplementation and/or detoxification.

References

  1. ^ Bates, P.; Bumrungsri, S.; Molur, S.; Srinivasulu, C. (2019). "Cynopterus sphinx". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T6106A22113656. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T6106A22113656.en. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  2. ^ Bates, P.J.J; D.A. Harrison (1997). Bats of the Indian Subcontinent. Harrison Zoological Museum. p. 258. ISBN 978-0951731314.
  3. ^ Balasingh, J; J. Suthakar-Isaac, S.; R. Subbaraj (1993). "Tent roosting by the frugivorous bat Cynopterus sphinx in southern India". Current Science. 65 (5): 418.
  4. ^ a b Tan, Min; Gareth Jones; Guangjian Zhu; Jianping Ye; Tiyu Hong; Shanyi Zhou; Shuyi Zhang; Libiao Zhang (October 28, 2009). Hosken, David (ed.). "Fellatio by Fruit Bats Prolongs Copulation Time". PLOS ONE. 4 (10): e7595. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.7595T. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0007595. PMC 2762080. PMID 19862320.
  5. ^ Advani, R (1982). "Feeding, foraging and roosting behavior of the fruit eating bats and damage to fruit crops in Rajasthan and Gujarat". Saeugeteirkundliche Mitteilungen. 30 (1): 46–48.
  6. ^ Sandhu, S; A. Gopalakrishna. (1984). "Some observations on the breeding biology of Cynopterus sphinx in central India". Current Science. 53 (22): 1189–1192.
  7. ^ Krishna, A; C.J. Dominic (1983). "Growth of young and sexual maturity of 3 species of Indian Bats". Journal of Animal Morphology and Physiology. 30 (1–2): 162–168.
  8. ^ Banjeree, K; Ilkal, M.A.; P.K. Deshmikh (1984). "Susceptibility of Cynopterus sphinx (frugivorus bat) and Suncus minimus (house shrew) to Japanese encephalitis virus". Indian Journal of Medical Research. 79 (1): 8–12.
  9. ^ Balasingh, J.; Koilraj, John; Kunz, Thomas H. (1995). "Tent Construction by the Short-nosed Fruit Bat Cynopterus sphinx (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) in Southern India". Ethology. 100 (3): 210–229. Bibcode:1995Ethol.100..210B. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0310.1995.tb00326.x. ISSN 1439-0310.
  10. ^ Mahandran, Valliyappan; Raghuram, Hanumanthan; Nathan, Parthasarathy Thiruchenthil (2015-11-17). "Geophagy by the Indian short-nosed fruit bat, Cynopterus sphinx (Pteropodidae) while foraging on Madhuca latifolia (Sapotaceae) in Tamil Nadu, South India". Acta Ethologica. 19: 95–99. doi:10.1007/s10211-015-0227-7. ISSN 0873-9749. S2CID 16892095.

Further reading

  • Nowak, Ronald. 1991 Walker's Mammals of the World, Fifth edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London.

Gallery

  • Feeding on kapok (Ceiba pentandra) at night in Kolkata, West Bengal, India
    Feeding on kapok (Ceiba pentandra) at night in Kolkata, West Bengal, India
  • Feeding on kapok at night in Kolkata
    Feeding on kapok at night in Kolkata
  • Feeding on kapok at night in Kolkata
    Feeding on kapok at night in Kolkata
  • v
  • t
  • e
Extant species of family Pteropodidae
Subfamily Nyctimeninae
Nyctimene
(tube-nosed fruit bats)
  • Broad-striped tube-nosed fruit bat (N. aello)
  • Common tube-nosed fruit bat (N. albiventer)
  • Pallas's tube-nosed bat (N. cephalotes)
  • Mountain tube-nosed fruit bat (N. certans)
  • Round-eared tube-nosed fruit bat (N. cyclotis)
  • Dragon tube-nosed fruit bat (N. draconilla)
  • Keast's tube-nosed fruit bat (N. keasti)
  • Island tube-nosed fruit bat (N. major)
  • Malaita tube-nosed fruit bat (N. malaitensis)
  • Demonic tube-nosed fruit bat (N. masalai)
  • Lesser tube-nosed bat (N. minutus)
  • Philippine tube-nosed fruit bat (N. rabori)
  • Eastern tube-nosed Bat (N. robinsoni)
  • Umboi tube-nosed fruit bat (N. vizcaccia)
Paranyctimene
  • Lesser tube-nosed fruit bat (P. raptor)
  • Steadfast tube-nosed fruit bat (P. tenax)
Subfamily Cynopterinae
Aethalops
(Pygmy fruit bats)
  • Borneo fruit bat (A. aequalis)
  • Pygmy fruit bat (A. alecto)
Alionycteris
  • Mindanao pygmy fruit bat (A. paucidentata)
Balionycteris
Chironax
  • Black-capped fruit bat (C. melanocephalus)
Cynopterus
(Dog-faced fruit bats)
  • Lesser short-nosed fruit bat (C. brachyotis)
  • Horsfield's fruit bat (C. horsfieldii)
  • Peters's fruit bat (C. luzoniensis)
  • Minute fruit bat (C. minutus)
  • Nusatenggara short-nosed fruit bat (C. nusatenggara)
  • Greater short-nosed fruit bat (C. sphinx)
  • Indonesian short-nosed fruit bat (C. titthaecheilus)
Dyacopterus
(Dayak fruit bats)
  • Brooks's dyak fruit bat (D. brooksi)
  • Rickart's dyak fruit bat (D. rickarti)
  • Dayak fruit bat (D. spadiceus)
Haplonycteris
  • Fischer's pygmy fruit bat (H. fischeri)
Latidens
  • Salim Ali's fruit bat (L. salimalii)
Megaerops
  • Tailless fruit bat (M. ecaudatus)
  • Javan tailless fruit bat (M. kusnotoi)
  • Ratanaworabhan's fruit bat (M. niphanae)
  • White-collared fruit bat (M. wetmorei)
Otopteropus
  • Luzon fruit bat (O. cartilagonodus)
Penthetor
  • Dusky fruit bat (P. lucasi)
Ptenochirus
(Musky fruit bats)
  • Greater musky fruit bat (P. jagori)
  • Lesser musky fruit bat (P. minor)
Sphaerias
  • Blanford's fruit bat (S. blanfordi)
Thoopterus
Subfamily Harpyionycterinae
Aproteles
  • Bulmer's fruit bat (A. bulmerae)
Dobsonia
(Bare-backed fruit bats)
  • Andersen's naked-backed fruit bat (D. anderseni)
  • Beaufort's naked-backed fruit bat (D. beauforti)
  • Philippine naked-backed fruit bat (D. chapmani)
  • Halmahera naked-backed fruit bat (D. crenulata)
  • Biak naked-backed fruit bat (D. emersa)
  • Sulawesi naked-backed fruit bat (D. exoleta)
  • Solomon's naked-backed fruit bat (D. inermis)
  • Lesser naked-backed fruit bat (D. minor)
  • Moluccan naked-backed fruit bat (D. moluccensis)
  • Panniet naked-backed fruit bat (D. pannietensis)
  • Western naked-backed fruit bat (D. peronii)
  • New Britain naked-backed fruit bat (D. praedatrix)
  • Greenish naked-backed fruit bat (D. viridis)
Harpyionycteris
  • Sulawesi harpy fruit bat (H. celebensis)
  • Harpy fruit bat (H. whiteheadi)
Subfamily Macroglossinae
Macroglossus
(Long-tongued fruit bats)
  • Long-tongued nectar bat (M. minimus)
  • Long-tongued fruit bat (M. sobrinus)
Melonycteris
  • Fardoulis's blossom bat (M. fardoulisi)
  • Black-bellied fruit bat (M. melanops)
  • Woodford's fruit bat (M. woodfordi)
Notopteris
(Long-tailed fruit bats)
  • Long-tailed fruit bat (N. macdonaldi)
  • New Caledonia blossom bat (N. neocaledonica)
Syconycteris
(blossom bats)
  • Common blossom bat (S. australis)
  • Halmahera blossom bat (S. carolinae)
  • Moss-forest blossom bat (S. hobbit)
Subfamily Pteropodinae
Acerodon
  • Sulawesi flying fox (A. celebensis)
  • Talaud flying fox (A. humilis)
  • Giant golden-crowned flying fox (A. jubatus)
  • Palawan fruit bat (A. leucotis)
  • Sunda flying fox (A. mackloti)
Desmalopex
  • White-winged flying fox (D. leucopterus)
  • Small white-winged flying fox (D. microleucopterus)
Eidolon
(Straw-coloured fruit bats)
  • Madagascan fruit bat (E. dupreanum)
  • Straw-coloured fruit bat (E. helvum)
Mirimiri
  • Fijian monkey-faced Bat (M. acrodonta)
Neopteryx
  • Small-toothed fruit bat (N. frosti)
Pteralopex
  • Bougainville monkey-faced Bat (P. anceps)
  • Guadalcanal monkey-faced Bat (P. atrata)
  • Greater monkey-faced Bat (P. flanneryi)
  • Montane monkey-faced Bat (P. pulchra)
  • New Georgian monkey-faced Bat (P. taki)
Pteropus
(flying foxes)
  • Admiralty flying fox (P. admiralitatum)
  • Aldabra flying fox (P. aldabrensis)
  • Black flying fox (P. alecto)
  • Small Samoan flying fox (P. allenorum)
  • Vanuatu flying fox (P. anetianus)
  • Aru flying fox (P. aruensis)
  • Ashy-headed flying fox (P. caniceps)
  • Bismarck masked flying fox (P. capistratus)
  • Moluccan flying fox (P. chrysoproctus)
  • Makira flying fox (P. cognatus)
  • Spectacled flying fox (P. conspicillatus)
  • Large Samoan flying fox (P. coxi)
  • Ryukyu flying fox (P. dasymallus)
  • New Ireland masked flying fox (P. ennisae)
  • Nicobar flying fox (P. faunulus)
  • Banks flying fox (P. fundatus)
  • Gilliard's flying fox (P. gilliardorum)
  • Gray flying fox (P. griseus)
  • Ontong Java flying fox (P. howensis)
  • Small flying fox (P. hypomelanus)
  • Andersen's flying fox (P. intermedius)
  • Kei flying fox (P. keyensis)
  • Livingstone's fruit bat (P. livingstonii)
  • Lombok flying fox (P. lombocensis)
  • Okinawa flying fox (P. loochoensis)
  • Lyle's flying fox (P. lylei)
  • Big-eared flying fox (P. macrotis)
  • Lesser flying fox (P. mahaganus)
  • Mariana fruit bat (P. mariannus)
  • Indian flying fox (P. medius)
  • Black-bearded flying fox (P. melanopogon)
  • Black-eared flying fox (P. melanotus)
  • Caroline flying fox (P. molossinus)
  • Great flying fox (P. neohibernicus)
  • Mauritian flying fox (P. niger)
  • Temotu flying fox (P. nitendiensis)
  • Ceram fruit bat (P. ocularis)
  • Ornate flying fox (P. ornatus)
  • P. pelagicus
  • Pelew flying fox (P. pelewensis)
  • Masked flying fox (P. personatus)
  • Geelvink Bay flying fox (P. pohlei)
  • Grey-headed flying fox (P. poliocephalus)
  • Bonin flying fox (P. pselaphon)
  • Little golden-mantled flying fox (P. pumilus)
  • Solomons flying fox (P. rayneri)
  • Rennell flying fox (P. rennelli)
  • Rodrigues flying fox (P. rodricensis)
  • Madagascan flying fox (P. rufus)
  • Samoa flying fox (P. samoensis)
  • Little red flying fox (P. scapulatus)
  • Seychelles fruit bat (P. seychellensis)
  • Philippine gray flying fox (P. speciosus)
  • Temminck's flying fox (P. temminckii)
  • Insular flying fox (P. tonganus)
  • Vanikoro flying fox (P. tuberculatus)
  • Kosrae flying fox (P. ualanus)
  • Large flying fox (P. vampyrus)
  • New Caledonia flying fox (P. vetulus)
  • Pemba flying fox (P. voeltzkowi)
  • Dwarf flying fox (P. woodfordi)
Styloctenium
  • Mindoro stripe-faced fruit bat (S. mindorensis)
  • Sulawesi stripe-faced fruit bat (S. wallacei)
Subfamily Rousettinae
Eonycteris
(Dawn fruit bats)
  • Greater nectar bat (E. major)
  • Cave nectar bat (E. spelaea)
  • Philippine dawn bat (E. robusta)
Rousettus
(rousette fruit bats)
  • Subgenus Boneia: Manado fruit bat (R. bidens)
  • Subgenus Rousettus: Geoffroy's rousette (R. amplexicaudatus)
  • Sulawesi rousette (R. celebensis)
  • Egyptian rousette (R. aegyptiacus)
  • Leschenault's rousette (R. leschenaulti)
  • Linduan Rousette (R. linduensis)
  • Comoro rousette (R. obliviosus)
  • Bare-backed rousette (R. spinalatus)
  • Subgenus Stenonycteris: Long-haired rousette (R. lanosus)
  • Madagascan rousette (R. madagascariensis)
Subfamily Epomophorinae
Epomophorini
Epomophorus
(Epauleted fruit bats)
  • Angolan epauletted fruit bat (E. angolensis)
  • Ansell's epauletted fruit bat (E. anselli)
  • Peters's epauletted fruit bat (E. crypturus)
  • Gambian epauletted fruit bat (E. gambianus)
  • Lesser Angolan epauletted fruit bat (E. grandis)
  • Ethiopian epauletted fruit bat (E. labiatus)
  • East African epauletted fruit bat (E. minimus)
  • Minor epauletted fruit bat (E. minor)
  • Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat (E. wahlbergi)
Epomops
(Epauleted bats)
  • Buettikofer's epauletted fruit bat (E. buettikoferi)
  • Dobson's fruit bat (E. dobsoni)
  • Franquet's epauletted fruit bat (E. franqueti)
Hypsignathus
  • Hammer-headed Bat (H. monstrosus)
Micropteropus
(Dwarf epauleted bats)
  • Hayman's dwarf epauletted fruit bat (M. intermedius)
  • Peters' dwarf epauletted fruit bat (M. pusillus)
Nanonycteris
  • Veldkamp's dwarf epauletted fruit bat (N. veldkampii)
Myonycterini
Lissonycteris
  • Angolan rousette (L. angolensis)
Megaloglossus
  • Azagnyi fruit bat (M. azagnyi)
  • Woermann's bat (M. woermanni)
Myonycteris
(Little collared fruit bats)
  • São Tomé collared fruit bat (M. brachycephala)
  • East African little collared fruit bat (M. relicta)
  • Little collared fruit bat (M. torquata)
Plerotini
Plerotes
  • D'Anchieta's fruit bat (P. anchietae)
Scotonycterini
Casinycteris
  • Short-palated fruit bat (C. argynnis)
  • Campo-Ma’an fruit bat (C. campomaanensis)
  • Pohle's fruit bat (C. ophiodon)
Scotonycteris
  • Zenker's fruit bat (S. zenkeri)
Taxon identifiers
Cynopterus sphinx