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Family: Vespertilionidae

Scientific name: Myotis macrodactylus

Common name: Japanese large-footed bat

IUCN status: Least Concern (LC)

MSJ Red list status: R

 

General morphology: Dorsal fur is grayish or blackish brown, ventral fur is paler grayish brown, white hairs are found on the lower abdomen and surface of femur; ears are fairly narrow and long; tragus is long and pointed (Yoshiyuki, 1989). 

 

Diet: Prey mainly on Diptera, Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, and Araneae (Funakoshi & Takeda, 1998).

 

Habitat: Mainly roosts in natural caves, abandoned mines, unused tunnels, and bomb shelters (Sano, 2000).

 

Echolocation calls: FM call structure; FMaxE=53.8 kHz (Hokkaido) (Fukui et al., 2004), FMaxE=60.3 kHz (Wakayama Prefecture) (Fukui et al., 2010), FMaxE=49.1 kHz (Tukono-shima Island) (Funakoshi et al., 2013)

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References:

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Yoshiyuki, M. (1989). A systematic study of the Japanese Chiroptera. 242pp. National Science Museum: Tokyo.

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Funakoshi, K., & Takeda, Y. (1998). Food habits of sympatric insectivorous bats in southern Kyushu, Japan. Mammal study, 23, 49-62.

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Sano, A. (2000). Distribution of four cave-dwelling bat species in Ishikawa Prefecture, with reference to the utilization of roosts. Mammalian Science, 40(2), 167-173.

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Fukui, D., Agetsuma, N., & Hill, D. A. (2004). Acoustic identification of eight species of bat (Mammalia: Chiroptera) inhabiting forests of southern Hokkaido, Japan: potential for conservation monitoring. Zoological Science, 21(9), 947-955.

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Fukui, D., Agetsuma, N., Hill, D. A., & Harada, M. (2010). Bats in the Wakayama Experimental Forest, Hokkaido University. Research Bulletin of the Hokkaido University Forests, 67(1), 13-23.

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Funakoshi, K., Kitanokuchi, T.,  Tanaka, H.,  Ohtubo, S.,  Ohhira, R., & Uchihara, M. (2013). Ecology of Ryukyu tube-nosed bat, Murina ryukyuana, on Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Nature of Kagoshima, 39, 1-6.

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The Island Bat Research Group (IBRG) is an international multi-disciplinary unit. It has been involved for several years in the research and conservation of endangered insular bats in Japan and other island countries.

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© 2018 by Christian E. Vincenot.

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Picture featured on this website were shot by members of the group, but also by close friends and collaborators. Therefore, reuse of these pictures is subject to prior approval by the IBRG to insure proper credit can be given to authors.

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