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The first record of Phyllops falcatus (Gray, 1839) in Mexico is documented from the island of Cozumel, Quintana Roo. This species is present in the Antilles, distributed in all the Cuban archipelago, Cayman Islands, and Hispaniola. It is likely that a hurricane moved these bats from Cuba to Cozumel. The Cozumel record extends the distribution more than 200 km west. Two new records from Cozumel of the bats Lasiurus ega and Molossus alvarezi are also provided.

Here we provide a compilation of bat distribution records based on neontological and paleontological data, updating the known distribution in Matanzas province, the Isle of Pines, and Central Cuba. From 97 collecting localities in the Province of Matanzas, we report 27 taxa out of the 34 known from the Cuban archipelago; 21 of them are extant while the other six are extinct. Antrozous koopmani and Natalus primus are considered locally extinct in Matanzas, as in most of the archipelago today, but had a wider distribution in the past that lasted until very late in the Holocene. The extinct endemics, Artibeus anthonyi, and Phyllops vetus, are reported for the first time in the province, and the distribution records of Phyllops falcatus, Lasiurus pfeifferi, Lasiurus insularis, Chilonatalus macer, and Eumops ferox are updated and expanded. These records make Matanzas the second richest province in bat diversity of the Cuban archipelago and an area of considerable conservation potential.

217. Cuban Fig-eating Bat Phyllops falcatus French: Phyllops de Cuba / German: Kuba-Feigenfledermaus / Spanish: Phyllops de Cuba Other common names: Cuban White-shouldered Bat Taxonomy. Arctibeus falcatus J. E. Gray, 1839, “ Cuba.” Restricted by G. Silva-Taboada in 1976 to Ciudad de Guanabacoa, Provincia de la Habana, Cuba. Phyllostoma albomaculatum J. Gundlach, 1861 is a synonym from La Habana, Cuba, and the type species of Phyllops. Species names have been combined with genera Stenoderma and Ardops. Some authors have used P. haitiensis as a different species, but in current use,it is a subspecies. Two subspecies recognized. Subspecies and Distribution. P.f.falcatus].E.Gray,1839—CubaandCaymanIs(GrandCaymanandCaymanBrac). P. f. haitiensisJ. A. Allen, 1908 — Dominican Republic and Haiti (Hispaniola I). A record from S Florida Keys may be an accidental occurrence. Descriptive notes. Head-body 55-65 mm (tailless), ear 11-13 mm, hindfoot 9-12 mm, forearm 40-48 mm; weight 16-23 g. The Cuban Fig-eating Bat is sexually dimorphic in cranial and body dimensions, with females being larger than males. It is medium-sized, with dense, silky, grayish brown or tan fur that is lighter on head and underparts. Dorsal hairs are 7-10 mm long, and ventral hairs are 5-8 mm. Each hair is mostly tricolored, with dark tips and bases and pale medial band. Very notable white spots of entirely white fur occur below each ear and on shoulders, and thick pink or yellow tragus makes it easy to differentiate the Cuban Fig-eating Bat from other sympatric phyllostomids. These white spots characterize Stenodermatini bats. Snout is wide and short, and noseleaf is broad, with broad ovate-shaped spear ending in pointed tip. Ears are relatively short, with rounded tips. Uropatagium is narrow, tail is absent, and calcar is 3-5 mm. Molars do not have W-pattern. Dental formulais12/2,C1/1,P 2/2, M 3/3 (x2) = 32. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 31 (males) or 30 (females) and FN = 56.: Habitat. Wide variety of habitats from xeric to mesic forests always at elevations below 700 m. The Cuban Fig-eating Bat has been captured in remnantforests in the city of Habana. Food and Feeding. There is evidence of the Cuban Fig-eating Bat feeding on fruits of Cecropia schreberiana (Urticaceae), Muntingia calabura (Muntingiaceae), Syzygium jambos (Myrtaceae), Piper (Piperaceae), and Ficus (Moraceae). Breeding. The Cuban Fig-eating Bat appears to be polyestrous and monotocous. Pregnant, lactating, or simultaneously lactating and pregnant females have been reported in February—June and September-December. Activity patterns. At least some Cuban Fig-eating Bats begin activity early in the evening and are active throughout the night. Nevertheless, peak activity is reached late in the night. Roosts are among leaves in forest canopies. Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Cuban Fig-eating Bat forms groups of 3-5 individuals. It might form harems, and it seems that males and females sometimes forage in pairs. Given its roosting behavior and social organization,it is expected to be similar to the Red Fruit Bat (Stenoderma rufum). Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Cuban Fig-eating Bat is considered common throughoutits limited distribution and occurs in protected areas. Nevertheless,it is always found in low densities, and its population could be sensitive to devastating effects of hurricanes. Bibliography. Mancina & Garcia (2011), Mancina, Davalos & Inchdustegui (2008), Mancina, Echenique-Diaz et al. (2007), Mancina, Garcia-Rivera & Capote (2007), Rodriguez-Duran & Christenson (2012), Silva-Taboada (1976b, 1979), Simmons (2005), Tavares & Mancina (2008), Tavares et al. (2018), Timm & Genoways (2003)., Published as part of Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Phyllostomidae, pp. 444-583 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 583, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6458594

We assessed the differences and similarities in diel activities among five phytophagous bat species at two habitats over two seasons within the Sierra del Rosario Biosphere Reserve in Cuba. We characterized temporal patterns of activity and overlap of temporal activity for frugivore and nectarivore bat species (Artibeus jamaicensis,Monophyllus redmani,Phyllonycteris poeyi,Phyllops falcatusandBrachyphylla nana) that occur in tropical evergreen forest sites with distinct altitude and vegetation structure during wet and dry seasons. Capture frequencies using mist-nets of 1180 capture events were the empirical basis for analyses. For each species we compared activity patterns between habitats, between seasons, between males and females, as well as between reproductive and non-reproductive females. We also assessed temporal overlap among each possible pair of species at each habitat and used Monte Carlo simulations to evaluate assemblage-wide temporal niche overlap using a new algorithm, termed Rosario, designed specifically for temporal data. The two habitats had the same species composition and bat diel rhythms tended to be consistent across habitats, seasons and sexes for most bat species. In general bat species pairwise temporal niche overlap was high, and the ensemble-wide temporal overlap was consistently high across habitats and seasons indicating a common constraint for bat activities. Activity peaks of most bat species coincided at 4–5 h after sunset, this being in sharp contrast to other Neotropical bat assemblages at continental sites where activity peaks usually overlap within the first 2 h after sunset. This strong disparity in timing of activity peaks between continental and insular bat assemblages can provide the framework for the generation of hypotheses that explain the potential role of time as a mediator of ecological interactions in bat assemblages.

Phyllops falcatus (Gray, 1839), a medium-sized short-faced bat, is a phyllostomid commonly called the Cuban white-shouldered bat or the Cuban fig-eating bat. This single extant species of Phyllops is characterized by distinct patches of white hair on each shoulder and just behind the posterior insertion of the ears, and a transparent dactylopatagium minus. P. falcatus is a foliage-roosting bat distributed across the Cuban Archipelago, Cayman Islands, and the Island of Hispaniola where it prefers forested habitats at low elevations (below 680 m). This species is rare in zoological collections and has previously been listed in the lower risk–near threatened category.

We studied the echolocation calls emitted by Phyllops falcatus (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) during foraging, in the field and in the lab. Calls emitted in free flight, in a more or less uncluttered situation, were about 4.5 ms (up to 5.3 ms) long and characterized by a sweep of the first harmonic (= fundamental) from ca. 73 kHz down to about 23 kHz, which is unusually large for phyllostomid bats. A less intense second harmonic was always present. The intervals between pulses varied between 55 and 170 ms with a mean of about 110 ms. During approach to bushes or trees (or during flight in confined space between bushes), or in the flight room, calls became shorter (ca. 2 ms) and more energy was allocated to the second harmonic, sometimes also a third harmonic appeared. During approach to a fruit calls were further shortened (about 1 ms or less), and call frequency increased to about 5 calls/100 ms, calls often being grouped. The large bandwidth of the first harmonic separates Phyllops from all other Cuban bat species and allows identification in the field.

Phyllops falcatus (Gray, 1839). Ann. Nat. Hist., ser. 1, 4:1. TYPE LOCALITY: Cuba, Habana, Guanabacoa. DISTRIBUTION: Cuba; as fossil, Isle of Pines (JRT). ISIS NUMBER: 5301405008037001001., Published as part of James H. Honacki, Kenneth E. Kinman & James W. Koeppl, 1982, Order Chiroptera, pp. 111-215 in Mammal Species of the World (1 st Edition), Lawrence, Kansas, USA :Alien Press, Inc. & The Association of Systematics Collections on page 162, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7352990