Part 3

Our specimens from Isla del Maíz Grande inexplicably agree rather closely in size (average but slightly smaller) with specimens of M. m. mexicana from western Nicaragua and elsewhere within the range of the subspecies, and are tentatively, therefore, referred to mexicana. Four specimens earlier reported (G. M. Allen, 1929:130) from the same island also are relatively large (forearm 35 mm). Further commentary on this insular population must await a time when additional material is available from Central America.

Tonatia nicaraguae Goodwin, 1942

Specimens.--Boaco: Santa Rosa, 17 km N, 15 km E Boaco, 300 m, 1. Chontales: Hato Grande, 13 km S, 8 km W Juigalpa, 60 m, 1.

Only four specimens of this seemingly rare species have been recorded previously from Nicaragua--one (the holotype) from Kanawa Creek, near Cukra, north of Bluefields, 100 ft, Zelaya (Goodwin, 1942b:205), another from 12.5 mi. S and 13 mi. E Rivas, 125 ft, Rivas (Davis and Carter, 1962:67-68), and two from 6 km N Tuma, 500 m, Matagalpa (Valdez and LaVal, 1971:248). Our specimens were caught in mist nets placed over small, quiet streams that were fringed with tall, gallery forest. The surrounding areas were savanna-like with small stands of secondary forest. An adult male taken on 21 April had testes that measured 5 mm in length, whereas those of another (9 August) were 3 mm.

Handley (1966b:761) synonymized T. nicaraguae with Tonatia minuta Goodwin, 1942, a conclusion with which we agree. However, the name nicaraguae (Goodwin, 1942b:205) has page priority over minuta Goodwin (op. cit.:206) and is the valid name for the species rather than minuta as used by Handley (see also LaVal, 1969:820; Gardner et al., 1970:716; Valdez and LaVal, 1971:248).

Measurements of the two males (that from Hato Grande listed first) are as follows: total length, 63, 60 mm; length of tail, 5, 6 mm; length of hind foot, 10, 9 mm; length of ear, 23, 23 mm; length of forearm, 34.5, 35.6 mm; weight, 11.4, 8.8 gms; greatest length of skull, 20.2, 20.5 mm; zygomatic breadth, 9.5, 9.5 mm; breadth of braincase, 8.5, 8.2 mm; postorbital breadth, 3.1, 2.9 mm; length of maxillary toothrow, 7.0, 7.1 mm; breadth across upper molars, 6.3, 6.5 mm. We have not compared our specimens directly with others from Middle America. On the basis of available measurements, they resemble material reported from Honduras (LaVal, 1969:820), averaging larger than other specimens for which measurements have been published (see especially Goodwin, 1942b:206; Davis and Carter, 1962:68; Davis et al., 1964:379; Gardner et al., 1970:716-717).

Phyllostomus hastatus panamensis J. A. Allen, 1904

Specimens.--Carazo: 3 km N, 4 km W Diriamba, 600 m, 1. Madriz: Darailí, 5 km N, 14 km E Condega, 940 m, 4. Managua: 3 km SW Tipitapa, 40 m, 1; 3 km N Sabana Grande, 50 m, 2; 2 km N Sabana Grande, 40 m, 1; 5 mi S Managua, 2. Matagalpa: La Danta, 1 km N, 5 km E Esquipulas, 760 m, 1. Nueva Segovia: 4.5 km N, 2 km E Jalapa, 630 m, 2; 1.5 km N, 1 km E Jalapa, 660 m, 1. Zelaya: Bonanza, 850 ft, 2; El Recreo, 25 m, 8.

This large spear-nosed species has been reported previously from Nicaragua only from Matagalpa (Goodwin, 1942c:126). Phyllostomus hastatus evidently occurs throughout the country and is relatively common in some places.

Two females taken 5 mi S Managua on 13 March each carried a single embryo (crown-rump length 27 and 32 mm). Lactating females were captured in June, July, and August.

Trachops cirrhosus coffini Goldman, 1925

A male fringe-lipped bat netted over a small stream at Cara de Mono, 50 m, Zelaya, in the Caribbean lowlands, on 24 April, 1968, constitutes the second known occurrence of this species in Nicaragua. Carter et al. (1966:491) earlier reported two males from Río Coco, 64 mi NNE Jinotega, 1000 ft, Jinotega. The testes of our specimen were 4 mm long.

Davis and Carter (1962:69), Carter et al. (loc. cit.), and Starrett and Casebeer (1968:11) did not apply a trinomen to bats of this species and noted overlap of measurements between T. c. cirrhosus (Spix) and T. c. coffini Goldman. However, until detailed comparisons can be made, we follow Jones (1966:452) in retaining the subspecific name coffini.

Chrotopterus auritus auritus (Peters, 1856)

An adult male captured in a mist net set in a forest clearing at Santa María de Ostuma, 1250 m, Matagalpa, represents the first record of this bat from Nicaragua. The testes of our individual, taken on 1 July 1966, were 6 mm in length. Externally and cranially our Nicaraguan example closely resembles specimens of C. auritus from Veracruz and the Yucatán Peninsula. Handley (1966b:762) and Starrett and Casebeer (1968:12) expressed doubt as to the validity of the currently used subspecific names in this species. Comparisons of cranial and external measurements of the material at hand with those given in various published accounts--Burt and Stirton (1961), Starrett and Casebeer (1968), and Thomas (1905), for example--reveal little variation. Until additional information is available (especially as concerns the South American races), however, we tentatively apply the subspecific name C. a. auritus to Middle American populations.

Anoura geoffroyi lasiopyga (Peters, 1868)

Four specimens of this species, netted on 24 and 25 July 1967 in a banana grove 1.5 km N and 1 km E Jalapa, 660 m, Nueva Segovia, provide the first record of this glossophagine from Nicaragua. Two males each had testes 6 mm in length; one female evidenced no reproduction activity, whereas another carried an embryo 4 mm in crown-rump length. In addition to our material, there is a specimen in the British Museum (BM 8.6.22.4) from Cafetal "Concordia," 4000 ft, Jinotega.

It may be noteworthy that the two localities at which this bat is known both are in the highlands of the northern part of Nicaragua, and that we failed to take additional specimens in many hundreds of hours of netting in other places in the country.

Choeroniscus godmani (Thomas, 1903)

Godman's bat was reported from Nicaragua by Handley (1966a:86), who used the locality designation "El Realejo" for the three specimens available to him. Actually, the three are from the nearby Hda. San Isidro, 10 km S Chinandega. We have taken three additional specimens as follows: Santa Rosa, 17 km N and 15 km E Boaco, 300 m, Boaco (an adult female taken on 21 March, which was pregnant with an embryo measuring 16 mm in crown-rump length); 2 km E Yalí, 900 m, Jinotega (an adult male netted on 3 August, testes 4 mm in length); and Santa María de Ostuma, 1250 m, Matagalpa (a nonpregnant, adult female captured on 11 April). Bats of this species have been taken as far north as the western Mexican state of Sinaloa (Jones, 1964b:510).

Lichonycteris obscura Thomas, 1895

Managua is the type locality of this rare long-nosed species and a specimen was reported from 6 mi W Rama, 50 ft, Zelaya, by Davis et al. (1964:380). Our collection contains three males, one from Jalapa, 660 m, Nueva Segovia, captured on the night of 27 July 1967 as it flew around a lighted room in a house, and two from the south side of the Río Mico, El Recreo, 25 m, Zelaya, taken on 26 and 27 July 1966 (one was netted and the other caught by hand in the lighted room of a building at night).

Selected measurements of the three males are, respectively: total length, 55, 58, 57 mm; length of tail, 7, 10, 9 mm; length of hind foot, 7, 9, 9 mm; length of ear, 10, 11, 11 mm; length of forearm, 30.9, 31.0, 30.8 mm; weight, 6.8, 6.8, 6.2 gms; length of testes, 1, 2, 2 mm; greatest length of skull, 18.5, 18.0, 17.9 mm; breadth of braincase, 8.1, 8.4, 8.3 mm; length of maxillary toothrow, 5.7, 5.5, 5.7 mm.

Carollia castanea H. Allen, 1890

Specimens.--Boaco: Santa Rosa, 17 km N, 15 km E Boaco, 300 m, 7. Chontales: 1 km N, 2.5 km W Villa Somoza, 330 m, 4. Matagalpa: 1 km NE Esquipulas, 420 m, 1. Nueva Segovia: 7 km N, 4 km E Jalapa, 660 m, 4. Zelaya: S side Río Mico, El Recreo, 25 m, 6; Cara de Mono, 50 m, 15.

Bats of this species apparently are common in the Caribbean lowlands of Nicaragua; the highest altitude at which we have taken specimens is 660 meters. The only previous report of C. castanea from Nicaragua evidently is that of Davis et al. (1964:379), who mentioned it in passing (from Cacao, Zelaya) in an account of Macrophyllum macrophyllum. Two adult females each carried an embryo having crown-rump lengths of 20 (21 March) and 10 mm (27 July). Adult females evincing no gross reproductive activity were taken in February (one), March (one), April (four), June (three), July (two), and August (two). Four adult males netted on 24 April had testes with an average length of 7.0 (5-9) mm, whereas those of four other adult males taken in late June had an average of 4.0 (2-6) mm.

In our collections from Nicaragua, we find at least three kinds of Carollia and we follow Handley (1966b:764-765) in tentatively assigning these to C. castanea, C. subrufa, and C. perspicillata. The systematics of this genus is currently under study by Ronald H. Pine. In Nicaragua, castanea differs from subrufa (with which it has been confused in the past) in being smaller, both externally and cranially, and much darker in color as well as in the additional characters mentioned by Handley (loc. cit.).

Sturnira ludovici ludovici Anthony, 1924