Mormoops megalophylla
TAXONOMY
Mormoops megalophylla (Peters, 1864), Coahuila, Mexico. Four subspecies are currently recognized.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
Spanish: Murcielago de labios festoneados.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
These bats have a peculiar upturned nosed and extensive flaps of skin around the mouth. Smaller medium-sized bats, ghost-faced bats have forearms 2.0–2.2 in (5.1–5.7 cm) long. They weigh from 0.4 to 0.7 oz (12–19 g). They are larger than Antillean ghost-faced bats, the other species in the genus.
DISTRIBUTION
Found from southwestern Texas and Arizona southwards through Baja California, Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador. There is a second population in South America, the northern parts of Colombia and Venezuela, the Dutch Antilles and Trinidad, and another along the Pacific coasts of Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru.
HABITAT
Occur in humid through semi-arid and arid regions from tropical forests to riparian forests and arid coastal regions. Ghost-faced bats roost in hollows, typically in caves and abandoned mines.
BEHAVIOR
Strong, fast fliers that forage over water, land, and in forests. Males and females may roost in different parts of the same cave or mine. Roosting individuals usually not in physical contact with one another. Colonies of ghost-faced bats can number thousands of individuals which tend to emerge together in streams.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
They eat flying insects, including moths, beetles and flies, reflecting on the availability of prey where they forage. Ghost-faced bats eat flying insects, taking a wide range of prey according to what is available where they forage.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Females bear a single young each year, with the timing of birth reflecting local rainy seasons. This species is most likely polygynous.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not listed by the IUCN.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
These bats are subject to cyclical outbreaks of rabies that cause mass mortality.
| Common name / Scientific name / Other common names | Physical characteristics | Habitat and behavior | Distribution | Diet | Conservation status |
| Antillean ghost-faced bat Mormoops blainvillii | Light brown upperparts, buffy underparts. In dark phase, upperparts are dark brown, underparts are ochraceous tawny. Lower lip has fleshy peg-like projections. Tail is well developed. Head and body length 2–2.9 in (5–7.3 cm), tail length 0.7–1.2 in (1.8–3.1 cm), forearm length 1.8–2.4 in (4.5–6.1 cm), average adult weight 0.4–0.6 oz (12–18g). | Variety of habitats from desert scrub to tropical forest. Extremely swift flight, movement of wings makes humming sound. Dwells deeper in caves than any other Jamaican bat. | Greater Antilles and adjacent small islands. | Most likely consists mainly of insects. | Lower Risk/Near Threatened |
| Davy's naked-backed bat Pteronotus davyi | Delicate, naked bat. Wings joined on back. Coat color is usually coffee, sometimes orange. Head and body length 1.6–2.2 in (4.2–5.5 cm), tail length 0.7–1 in (1.8–2.5 cm), forearm length 1.7–1.9 (4.3–4.9 cm), weight 0.17–0.35 oz (5–10 g). | Dry territories of the province of Guanacaste, and the environs of Quepos to the northern Caribbean slope from sea level to 1,310 ft (400 m). Take refuge in caverns with high temperatures. Nocturnal. | Northwestern Peru and northern Venezuela to southern Baja California, southern Sonora, and Nuevo Leon, Mexico; Trinidad; and southern Lesser Antilles. | Mainly insects. | Not threatened |
| Big naked-backed bat Pteronotus gymnonotus | Naked back, wings united on mean line, hindquarters are naked with a very small coat. Coat color is orange coffee. Head and body length 2.1–2.7 in (5.5–6.9 cm), tail length 0.8–1.1 in (2.1–2.8 cm), forearm length 2–2.2 in (5–5.5 cm), weight 0.38–0.63 oz (11–18 g). | Low territories of the Caribbean and Pacific slopes, from sea level to 4,920 ft (1,500 m). Refuge is usually caverns. Gregarious and nocturnal. | Southern Veracruz, Mexico, to Peru, northeastern Brazil, and Guyana. | Insects caught in the air. | Not threatened |
| Macleay's moustached bat Pteronotus macleayii | Skin folds are on chin and lower lip. Brownish in color. Hindquarters are naked with a small coat. Average weight 0.14–0.21 oz (4–6 g), wingspan 9.8–11 in (25–28 cm). | Large chambers and passageways far from the cave entrance. Roost in large colonies. | Habana and Guanabacoa, Cuba. | Mainly insects. | Vulnerable |
| Wagner's moustached bat Pteronotus personatus | Coat color is orange or coffee, both equally common. Head and body length 1.7–2.2 in (4.3–5.5 cm), tail length 0.6–0.8 in (1.5–2 cm), forearm length 1.6–1.9 in (4.2–4.8 cm). | Dry and humid low territories of the Pacific slope, from sea level to 1,310 ft (400 m). Roost in large colonies. Nocturnal. | Colombia, Peru, Brazil, and Suriname to southern Sonora and southern Tamaulipas, Mexico; and Trinidad. | Insects. | Not threatened |
| Sooty moustached bat Pteronotus quadridens | Coloration is variable, oftentimes light or dark brown, grayish brown, or ochraceous orange. Underparts are usually paler. Head and body length 1.5–3 in (4–7.7 cm), tail length 0.6–1.2 in (1.5–3 cm), forearm length 1.4–2.6 in (3.5–6.5 cm). | Roost in caves and tunnels, as well as houses. May also shelter in hollows of plants. Seek darker recesses when in caves. Generally hang singly rather than in compact masses. | Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico. | Mainly insects. | Lower Risk/Near Threatened |
