Dobsonia peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1810
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Chiroptera
Pteropodidae
Dobsonia
Dobsonia peronii

description: 84.
Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat
Dobsonia peronii
French: Roussette de Péron / German: Westlicher Nacktriickenflughund / Spanish: Dobsonia de Péron
Taxonomy. Cephalotes peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810,
“L’ile de Timor,” Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia.
"Two subspecies are recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
D. p. peronii E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1810 — E Lesser Sundas (Sumba, Sawu, Roti, Timor, Wetar, Sermata, and Babar Is).
D. p. grandis Bergmans, 1978 — W Lesser Sundas (Bali, Nusa Penida, Lombok, Sumbawa, Moyo, Sangeang, Komodo, Rinca, Flores, Lembata, Pantar, and AlorIs).
Descriptive notes. Head-body 141-158 mm, tail 29-32 mm, ear 24-26 mm, hindfoot 24-30 mm, forearm 114-121 mm; weight 162-235 g. Adult male Western Nakedbacked Fruit Bats have back of neck olive, shading to dark olive-bistre on head; rump is brownish olive; flanks are drab, mixed with tawny-olive; breast and belly are suffused with light golden tawny-olive. Females are drab dark brown on head, back, and rump; shoulders are lighter brown; and back and rump are very sparsely haired, appearing almost naked on back. Female ventral fur from upper chest extending down each side is light grayish olive, mixed with drab brown hairs having buffy tips; central chest and abdomen are drab dark brown, tipped with honey-yellow. Young males are lighter than adult females, with shoulders being brown and upper chest and sides light brown. Adult males have very strong musky odor. Index claw (second digit of wing) is absent. There is well-marked anterointernal basal ledge on upper and lower third premolars, a posterior basal ledge in second upper and lower premolars as on third lower premolar. Median surface ridge is present on M' and M, and often also on P° and M,. Anterointernal corner of M' is sharply marked offas a distinct ledge; however, there is no well-marked anterointernal basal ledge in M. Longitudinal ridges of cheekteeth are simple.
Habitat. Monsoon forests, dry woodland savannas, and moist tropical forests from sea level up to elevations of ¢. 880 m.
Food and Feeding. Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats eat fruits of Borassus (Arecaceae), Muntingia (Muntingiaceae), and Ficus (Moraceae). They commonly feed from the same trees visited by Geoffroy’s Rousettes (Rousettus amplexicaudatus) and Wallacean Gray Flying Foxes (Pteropus griseus).
Breeding. Two Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats captured in October on Lombok were lactating and had left and right uterine horns slightly swollen. Five adult males on Timor were in breeding condition in March-April, and a female was pregnant in March, with near-term fetus weighing 48 g.
Activity patterns. Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats typically emerge ¢.90 minutes after dark and forage throughout the night. Groups roost in limestone caves, rock fissures, crevices, hollow trees, and tree canopies and under rock ledges. Occasionally, individuals roost beneath large fan-shaped fronds of Corypha and Borassus palms (Arecaceae).
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Up to 300 adults and young Western Naked-backed Fruit Bats can occupy dimly lit large cave chambers, sometimes jointly occupied with Black-bearded Tomb Bats (7aphozous melanopogon). Smaller groups of young might roost in chambers of a cave not occupied by adults.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat has a large distribution and is abundant, presumably with stable population. Although hunted, often by smoking them out of caves, consumption is restricted to local indigenous people. The Western Naked-backed Fruit Bat seems to be tolerant of disturbance from human activities. Conservation awareness programs to avoid disturbance at roost caves would be beneficial.
Bibliography. Bergmans (1978b), Goodwin (1979), Hutson, Suyanto & Helgen (2008), Kitchener, Boeadi et al. (1990).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Pteropodidae, pp. 16-162 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 109, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6448815