Macrotus waterhousii

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	CHIROPTERA	PHYLLOSTOMIDAE

Scientific Name:

Macrotus waterhousii

Species Authority:

Gray, 1843

Common Name/s:

English

–

Waterhouse's Leaf-nosed Bat

Taxonomic Notes:

Includes mexicanus. Caribbean forms reviewed by Timm and Genoways (2003).

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Published:

2008

Assessor/s:

Mancina, C. & Incháustegui, S

Reviewer/s:

Medellín, R. (Chiroptera Red List Authority) & Schipper, J. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Contributor/s:

Justification:
This species is listed as Least Concern in because of its wide distribution, presumed large population, occurrence in a number of protected areas, tolerance to some degree of habitat modification, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category.

History:

1996

–

Lower Risk/least concern (Baillie and Groombridge 1996)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is known from Sonora and Hidalgo (Mexico) south to Guatemala; Bahamas Islands; Jamaica; Cuba; Cayman Islands (northwest of Jamaica); Hispaniola and Beata Islands (Simmons, 2005). It occurs from lowlands to 1,400 m (Reid, 1997).
Countries:	Native: Bahamas; Belize; Cayman Islands; Cuba; Dominican Republic; Guatemala; Haiti; Jamaica; Mexico
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	This bat is rare and local in southeastern Mexico and possible north Central America; large aggregations are found in parts of west Mexico (Arroyo-Cabrales pers. comm.). Very common in Cuba and Dominican Republican (Mancina and Inchaustegui pers. comm.).
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species is found in dry areas, rarely in evergreen, lowlands forest (Reid, 1997). It roosts in large caves and mine tunnels, occasionally in buildings, in groups of 1 to 500. Individuals hang by one or both feet from high ceilings near the roost entrance and do not cluster. This species does not crawl on feet and thumbs like many bats, but can walk rapidly in an upside-down position. Activity starts 1 to 2 hours after sunset; when foraging, flight is slow and maneuverable, usually within 1 m of the ground. Fruit and insects are eaten; animal prey is gleaned by mouth from the ground or vegetation and carried to a night roost (Reid, 1997). A second foraging flight occurs about 2 hours before sunrise (Reid, 1997).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Habitat and Ecology:

This species is found in dry areas, rarely in evergreen, lowlands forest (Reid, 1997). It roosts in large caves and mine tunnels, occasionally in buildings, in groups of 1 to 500. Individuals hang by one or both feet from high ceilings near the roost entrance and do not cluster. This species does not crawl on feet and thumbs like many bats, but can walk rapidly in an upside-down position. Activity starts 1 to 2 hours after sunset; when foraging, flight is slow and maneuverable, usually within 1 m of the ground. Fruit and insects are eaten; animal prey is gleaned by mouth from the ground or vegetation and carried to a night roost (Reid, 1997). A second foraging flight occurs about 2 hours before sunrise (Reid, 1997).

Systems:

Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	None.

Major Threat(s):

None.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Found in protected areas.

Conservation Actions:

Found in protected areas.

Citation:	Mancina, C. & Incháustegui, S 2008. Macrotus waterhousii. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 05 November 2012.
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