Major's long-fingered bat

Major's long-fingered bat
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Chiroptera
Family: Miniopteridae
Genus: Miniopterus
Species:
M. majori
Binomial name
Miniopterus majori
Thomas, 1906
Major's long-fingered bat range

Major's long-fingered bat (Miniopterus majori) is a species of vesper bat in the family Miniopteridae. It is found only in Madagascar. It is similar to M. schreibersi of continental Africa, differing by having a shorter forearm, slightly longer digits and a narrow box-shaped skull. The pelage is often a greyish-brown colour, and the tragus is kidney-shaped and is a prominent feature. It is an insectivore and is viewed as a possible contributor to pest removal in Madagascar. The species was named in honour of Swiss zoologist C. I. Forsyth Major.

Taxonomy

Miniopterus majori was described as a new species by Oldfield Thomas in 1906 with a type locality of Imasindrary, northeastern Betsileo, Madagascar. The holotype is held in the Natural History Museum, London.

The species is assigned to the genus Miniopterus. Molecular studies of Malagasy Miniopterus have recovered M. majori as part of a lineage containing M. gleni and M. griffithsi, supporting its placement among the long-fingered bats.

Historically, Miniopterus was placed within the family Vespertilionidae. Molecular research by provided evidence for recognising the long-fingered bats as a separate family, Miniopteridae.

References

  1. ↑ Monadjem, A.; Rakotoarivelo, A.R.; Jenkins, R.K.B. (2017). "Miniopterus majori". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017 e.T40039A22061249. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T40039A22061249.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Kemp, James; López-Baucells, Adrià; Rocha, Ricardo; Wangensteen, Owen S.; Andriatafika, Zo; Nair, Abhilash; Cabeza, Mar (2019). "Bats as potential suppressors of multiple agricultural pests: A case study from Madagascar". Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 269: 88–96. Bibcode:2019AgEE..269...88K. doi:10.1016/j.agee.2018.09.027. hdl:2445/191614. S2CID 92389589.
  3. 1 2 "Miniopterus majori O. Thomas, 1906 | Major's Long-fingered Bat". ASM Mammal Diversity Database. American Society of Mammalogists. Retrieved 2026-08-25.
  4. ↑ Christidis, Les; Goodman, Steven M.; Naughton, Kate; Appleton, Belinda (2014). "Insights into the evolution of a cryptic radiation of bats: dispersal and ecological radiation of Malagasy Miniopterus (Chiroptera: Miniopteridae)". PLOS ONE. 9 (3) e92440. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092440. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 3958536. PMID 24642892.