Geographic Range
Taphozous nudiventris
is widely distributed, occurring through much of northern and central Africa, the
Middle East, India, and other sub-Himalayan areas, and into the Malay Peninsula. Countries
in which naked-rumped tomb bats are known to occur include: Algeria, Burkina Faso,
Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ghana, India,
Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan,
Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, United Republic of Togo, and Turkey.
- Biogeographic Regions
- palearctic
- ethiopian
Habitat
Naked-rumped tomb bats are found in arid habitats, including dry grasslands, deserts,
and scrub forests.
Naked-rumped tomb bats roost in crevices in well-lit caves, old abandoned buildings,
and sandstone hills. Sometimes they occupy the nests of swifts and are found in association
with
Rousettus leschenaulti
and
Hipposideros speoris
. The roosts of
T. nudiventris
often contain only a few individuals, however, some roosts have been found with hundreds
of individuals.
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- desert or dune
- savanna or grassland
- scrub forest
- Other Habitat Features
- agricultural
- caves
Physical Description
Taphozous nudiventris
is large compared to other species of
Taphozous
. It is similar to
Taphozous perforatus
but the length of the forearm is larger in
T. nudiventris
, ranging from 64 mm to 83 mm. This species is divided into two subspecies,
T. n. nudiventris
, which includes all specimens from the Levant and southern Arabia, and
T. n. magnus
, which includes specimens from Iraq, Bahrain, and Das Island.
Taphozous nudiventris magnus
is larger than
T. n. nudiventris
). Sexual dimorphism is apparent, with males larger than females in all characters
except total length and forearm length. Males have a gland on the upper part of their
chest, which is absent in females. The pelage is short and fine. It is brown or grayish
on the dorsal surface and light grey on the ventral surface. The lower back and abdomen
are naked of hair, giving them their common name: "naked rumped tomb bat."
The skull is large and robust with well developed sagittal and lamdoidal crests. It
is similar in size to
T. saccolaimus
and
T. theobaldi
. The skull of
T. nudiventris
can be distinguished from
T. saccolaimus
by the tympanic bullae, which are completely ossified in the former, but not in the
latter. Compared to
T. theobaldi
,
T. nudiventris
has broad zygomatic arches and less developed basisphenoid pits.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- heterothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- male larger
Reproduction
Naked rumped tomb bats breed seasonally during the autumn. There has been little research
on their mating system. In the closely related species,
Taphozous melanopogon
, the sex ratio in colonies varies throughout the season. There is an equal ratio
of males and females during the breeding season but during the non-breeding season
there are more males than females, suggesting some differences in roosting preferences
of males and females.
In Iraq, insemination in females happens in autumn before naked rumped tomb bats migrate
to winter roosts. The fertilization of the egg is delayed until 3 to 7 days after
females awake from hibernation at the end of March. A single offspring is born in
the last week of May. The offspring remains naked and blind for three weeks and travels
on its mother's back during this time period. By the end of August the young are
capable of flight.
In India, copulation and fertilization take place at the same time, during the last
week of March and the first week of April. The gestation period is about 98 days,
and birth occurs in mid-July. Full adult size is reached in about six months. Females
are sexually mature at about nine months and males at about twenty months.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- viviparous
- sperm-storing
For three weeks after the young are born they cling to their mother in flight. Lactation
lasts for about six weeks.
- Parental Investment
- altricial
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
Not much is known about longevity in T. nudiventris
Behavior
In southern Iraq
T. nudiventris
individuals hibernate from the end of November until the end of March. They store
fat reserves for hibernation. They tend to have a strong and unpleasant odor from
accumulated wastes in roosts.
Home Range
The home range of
T. nudiventris
is large. This species has a strong, fast and straight flight and it is thought to
travel far from its roost when hunting.
Communication and Perception
Naked rumped tomb bats communicate through loud metallic squeaking. They use echolocation
to aid in hunting and flight. Also, the glandular sacs on their chests may be used
for territorial scent marking.
- Other Communication Modes
- scent marks
- Perception Channels
- visual
- tactile
- acoustic
- ultrasound
- echolocation
- chemical
Food Habits
Naked rumped tomb bats are insectivorous. Moth scales were found in large quantities
in stomach contents, being especially common in the Gharbiya province when cotton
leaf worms,
Spodoptera littoralis
, are abundant. In addition, they feed on beetles, cockroaches, house crickets, wasps,
grasshoppers, and winged ants.
- Primary Diet
- carnivore
- Animal Foods
- insects
Predation
In Palestine,
T. nudiventris
has been found in the pellets of barn owls,
Tyto alba
.
Ecosystem Roles
Taphozous nudiventris
is host to many different parasites including
Trypanosoma longiflagellum
,
Lecithodendrium duboisi
,
Prosthodendrium parvouterus
,
Plagiorchis koreanus
and
Pycnoporus heteroporus
. It is also considered a predator to many insects, which helps keep insect populations
in check.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
The guano of these bats is used as fertilizer by people in some regions. These bats
also feed on insects that cause extensive crop damage.
- Positive Impacts
- produces fertilizer
- controls pest population
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no reported negative economic effects of T. nudiventris on humans.
Conservation Status
In some areas populations of
T. nudiventris
have declined. In 1958 the government of Israel authorized the use of ethylene-dibromide
to fumigate caves inhabited by fruit bats,
Rousettus aegyptiacus
, because they were considered agricultural pests. Many insectivorous bats that shared
the same roosts, including
T. nudiventris
, were harmed as a result of this campaign. This caused the population increase of
a
noctuid moth
, which, in turn, increased crop damage. It has also been noted, in India, that the
population size of this species at many of its former roosts has decreased significantly.
However, because naked-rumped tomb bats are widespread and fairly common, they are
considered "least concern" by the IUCN.
Additional Links
Contributors
Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Lauren Kelbel (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Phil Myers (editor, instructor), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Palearctic
-
living in the northern part of the Old World. In otherwords, Europe and Asia and northern Africa.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- Ethiopian
-
living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- desert or dunes
-
in deserts low (less than 30 cm per year) and unpredictable rainfall results in landscapes dominated by plants and animals adapted to aridity. Vegetation is typically sparse, though spectacular blooms may occur following rain. Deserts can be cold or warm and daily temperates typically fluctuate. In dune areas vegetation is also sparse and conditions are dry. This is because sand does not hold water well so little is available to plants. In dunes near seas and oceans this is compounded by the influence of salt in the air and soil. Salt limits the ability of plants to take up water through their roots.
- tropical savanna and grassland
-
A terrestrial biome. Savannas are grasslands with scattered individual trees that do not form a closed canopy. Extensive savannas are found in parts of subtropical and tropical Africa and South America, and in Australia.
- savanna
-
A grassland with scattered trees or scattered clumps of trees, a type of community intermediate between grassland and forest. See also Tropical savanna and grassland biome.
- temperate grassland
-
A terrestrial biome found in temperate latitudes (>23.5° N or S latitude). Vegetation is made up mostly of grasses, the height and species diversity of which depend largely on the amount of moisture available. Fire and grazing are important in the long-term maintenance of grasslands.
- scrub forest
-
scrub forests develop in areas that experience dry seasons.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- heterothermic
-
having a body temperature that fluctuates with that of the immediate environment; having no mechanism or a poorly developed mechanism for regulating internal body temperature.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- viviparous
-
reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.
- sperm-storing
-
mature spermatozoa are stored by females following copulation. Male sperm storage also occurs, as sperm are retained in the male epididymes (in mammals) for a period that can, in some cases, extend over several weeks or more, but here we use the term to refer only to sperm storage by females.
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- migratory
-
makes seasonal movements between breeding and wintering grounds
- hibernation
-
the state that some animals enter during winter in which normal physiological processes are significantly reduced, thus lowering the animal's energy requirements. The act or condition of passing winter in a torpid or resting state, typically involving the abandonment of homoiothermy in mammals.
- social
-
associates with others of its species; forms social groups.
- colonial
-
used loosely to describe any group of organisms living together or in close proximity to each other - for example nesting shorebirds that live in large colonies. More specifically refers to a group of organisms in which members act as specialized subunits (a continuous, modular society) - as in clonal organisms.
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- scent marks
-
communicates by producing scents from special gland(s) and placing them on a surface whether others can smell or taste them
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- ultrasound
-
uses sound above the range of human hearing for either navigation or communication or both
- echolocation
-
The process by which an animal locates itself with respect to other animals and objects by emitting sound waves and sensing the pattern of the reflected sound waves.
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
References
Al-kuwari, , S. Kaltham. 1999. On Prosthodendrium parvouterus (Trematoda: Lecithodendriidae) a parasite of the bat Taohozous(sic) nudiventris. Qatar University Science Journal , 18: 155-158.
Bates, P., D. Harrison. 1997. Bats of the Indian Subcontinent . England: Harrison Zoological Museum.
Harrison, D., P. Bates. 1991. The mammals of Arabia . Sevenoaks, Kent, England: Harrison Zoological Museum.
Kifune, T., A. Molan, I. Saeed. 1986. Trematode Parasites of Bats in Iraq. Medical Bulletin of Fukuoka University , 13/4: 323-326.
Makin, D., H. Mendelsson. 1985. Insectivorous Bats Victims of Israel Campaign. Bats , vol 2/ issue 4: 1-4.
Marinkelle, C. 1977. Trypanosoma (Herpetosoma) longiflagellum Sp.N from the tomb bat, Taphozous nudiventris, from Iraq. Journal of Wildlife Diseases , 13/3: 262-264. Accessed March 20, 2006 at http://www.jwildlifedis.org/cgi/content/abstract/13/3/262 .
Mickleburgh, S., A. Hutson, W. Bergmans, J. Fahr. 2004. "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Taphozous nudiventris" (On-line). Accessed March 11, 2006 at http://www.redlist.org/search/details.php?species=21462 .
Nader, I. "Bats of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: an update" (On-line). Accessed March 11, 2006 at http://www.saudicaves.com/saudibats .
Qumsiyeh, M., Z. Amr, R. Al-Oran. 1998. Further Record of Bats From Jordan and a Synopsis. Turkish Journal of Zoology , 22: 277-284. Accessed March 18, 2006 at http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/zoology/issues/zoo-98-22-4/zoo-22-4-2-97039.pdf .
Qumsiyeh, M. 1985. The Bats of Egypt . Lubbock, Texas: Texas Tech Press.
Saoud, M., M. Ramadan. 1976. Studies on Trematodes of the Genus Lecithodendrium from some Egytpian bats with a description of two new species. Journal of Helminthology , 50/4: 281-286.
Sapkal, V., K. Kahmre. 1983. Breeding Habits and associated phenomenon in some Indian bats. Part VIII. Taphozous melanopogon (Temmink) Emballonuridae. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society , 80/2: 303-309. Accessed March 21, 2006 at http://searchtools.lib.umich.edu/V/BDQR336G68EU7NBN68ID7P7LU85EPIX9N3GUKDSXR87A3LG9B6-24844?func=quick-3&short-format=002&set_number=000339&set_entry=000001&format=999 .