McIntyre's horseshoe bat explained

McIntyre's horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus mcintyrei) is a species of horseshoe bat that is endemic to Papua New Guinea.

Taxonomy

It was described as a subspecies of the arcuate horseshoe bat (R. arcuatus) in 1982 by J. E. Hill and D. A. Schlitter. The holotype had been collected in 1980 in a limestone cave in Telefomin, Papua New Guinea. They gave it the trinomen of R. arcuatus mcintyrei. The eponym for the subspecies name "mcintyrei" is Thomas McIntyre, thus honored for his support and appreciation of Australasian mammal research.^[1] In 2013, Patrick et al. published that R. a. mcintyrei should be considered a full species on the basis of differences in mitochondrial DNA.^[2]

Description

The fur of its back is medium-brown, with individual hairs bicolored: hairs are whitish at the base and brown at the tip. The fur of its belly is paler in color than its back. It has large, broad ears with pointed tips. Males have an average weight of, while females have an average weight of .^[1]

Range and habitat

R. mcintyrei is endemic to Papua New Guinea, where it is documented in forest habitats. It has been documented at altitudes from above sea level.

Notes and References

1. Hill. J. E.. Schlitter. D. A.. 1982. A Record of Rhinolophus Arcuatus (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae) from New Guinea, with the Description of a New Subspecies. Annals of Carnegie Museum. 51. 459–463. 10.5962/p.214569. free.
2. Patrick. L. E.. McCulloch. E. S.. Ruedas. L. A.. 2013. Systematics and biogeography of the arcuate horseshoe bat species complex (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae). Zoologica Scripta. 42. 6. 553–590. 10.1111/zsc.12026.