Rhinolophus darlingi K. Andersen 1905
Creators: name: Burgin, Connor
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Chiroptera
Rhinolophidae
Rhinolophus
Rhinolophus darlingi

description: 24. Darling’s Horseshoe Bat <i>Rhinolophus darlingi</i> French: Rhinolophe <i>de</i> Darling <i> I <b>German</b></i> : <i>Darling-Hufeisennase</i> / <b>Spanish:</b> Herradura <i>de</i> Darling <b>Taxonomy.</b> <i>Rhinolophus darlingi</i> K Andersen, 1905, “[Upper] Mazoe [Valley], Mashonaland, 4000 ft. [= 1219 m],” Zimbabwe. Based on morphological similarities, <i>R darlingi</i> was in the <i>ferrumequinum</i> species group with <i> R damarmsis, R deckend, R <i> silvestris, R hiUorum, R sakejiensis, R <i>bocharicus, R ferrumequinum, R clivosus, R nippon,</i> </i> and <i>R horaceki,</i> however, based on genetics, it is <i>now</i> in the <i>jumigatus</i> group or close to <i>R ferrumequinum.</i> Additional phylogenetic research is needed. <i>Rhinolophus darlingi previously</i> included <i>R damarensis</i> as a subspecies, but <i>they</i> are now recognized as distinct species based on molecular and morphological evidence. Populations of <i>R darlingi</i> in <i>West</i> Africa might ultimately represent distinct species based on divergent ecological niches between these and populations in southern African. Monotypic.</i> <b>Distribution.</b> SE Africa from SE Zambia, S Malawi, W Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and N Botswana to Swaziland and C &amp; E South Africa, and isolated records from Uganda and Tanzania; there are also apparently records from Togo, Benin, C Nigeria, NE Egypt, and Lesotho, but they need validation and are not mapped here. Descriptive <b>notes.</b> <i>Head-body</i> c. 50-62 mm, tail 20—37 mm, ear 15-23 mm, hindfoot 8-11 mm, forearm 41- 6—51 mm; weight 6-13 g. Dorsal pelage is gray, brownish gray, or grayish brown (hairs are cream or pale grayish brown, with darker gray, brownish gray, or grayish brown tips); venter is paler, generally pale gray. There is no orange morph. Males lack axillary tufts. Ears are short (40—47% of forearm length). <i>Noseleaf</i> has large subtriangular lancet, with slighdy concave sides and blundy pointed tip; connecting process is smoothly rounded and subequal to height of sella or slightly shorter; sella is naked, with concave sides and broad, rounded tip; and horseshoe is narrow at 7-1-9- 1 mm, nearly covers muzzle, and has lateral leaflets and deep median emargination. Lower lip has one medial groove. <i>Wings</i> and uropatagium are translucent gray to black. Baculum is trumpet-shaped, with rounded, <i>relatively short</i> shaft. Skull is robust, with thick zygomatic arches (zygomatic width is larger than mastoid width); nasal swellings are medium in relative height; frontal depression is shallow to moderately deep, and supraorbital ridges are well defined; sagittal crest is somewhat well-developed anteriorly but weakly developed to absent posteriorly; and interpterygoid groove is conspicuous. P2 is small and <i>completely</i> displaced labially or absent, allowing C1 and P4 to touch, and P3 is tiny and completely displaced labially or absent so that P2 and P4 are in contact Dental formula is variable: I 1/2, C 1/1, P 2/2, M 3/3 (x2) = 30; I 1/2, C 1/1, P 1/2, M 3/3 (x2) = 28; I 1/2, C 1/1, P 2/3, M 3/3 (<i>x</i> 2) = 32; or 11/2, <i>C</i> 1/1, P 1/3, M 3/3 (x2) = 30. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 58 and FNa = 60 (South <i>Africa</i>). Habitat. Mesic and semiarid woodland savannas. Darling’s Horseshoe Bats mainly roost in caves and abandoned mines, preferring <i>rocky</i> terrain with crevices in southern part of their distribution. <b>Food and</b> Feeding. Darling’s Horseshoe Bat is <i>insectivorous</i>; it <i>might</i> forage in cluttered areas. Breeding. Darling’s Horseshoe Bat might be <i>seasonally</i> monoestrous, but there are not enough data to confirm this. Pregnant females have been captured in October in South Africa and in December in Zimbabwe. <i>A</i> female with young was captured in October in Zimbabwe. Litter size is nearly always one, <i>but</i> twin fetuses were reported in Zimbabwe, with a fetus in each uterine hom. <b>Activity patterns.</b> Darling’s Horseshoe Bats are nocturnal and are known to roost by day in caves, abandoned mines, large hollow trees, and unused buildings. Call shape is FM/CF/FM, with mean F <i>component</i> of 88-1 kHz and 86 kHz in South Africa and 86-2 kHz and 85-8 kHz in Swaziland. <b>Movements, Home range and Social</b> organization. Darling’s Horseshoe Bats are known to roost in colonies with two to c.150 individuals, although they are <i>typically</i> found in roosts of dozens of individuals. In roosts, <i>they</i> hang in small clusters <i>but</i> do not touch each another. <b>Status and Conservation.</b> Classified as Least Concern on <i>The</i> IUCN <i>Red List.</i> Darling’s Horseshoe Bat has a wide distribution with no major threats <i>currently</i> identified, although <i>they</i> might be locally threatened by habitat destruction. <b>Bibliography.</b> ACR (2018), Cotterill &amp; Happold (2013a), Csorba eta/. (2003), Happold (1987), Jacobs, Babiker et al. (2013), Jacobs, Barclay &amp; Walker (2007), Monadjem, Reside &amp; Lumsden (2007), Monadjem, Shapiro et <i>al.</i> (2017), Monadjem, Taylor, Jacobs &amp; Cotterill (2017e), Rautenbach (1986), Skinner &amp; Chimimba (2005), Smithers (1968), Taylor (1999, 2000).
description: Published as part of <i>Burgin, Connor, 2019, Rhinolophidae, pp. 280-332 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions</i> on page 293, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3748525