Sundevall's roundleaf bat

About the Sundevall's roundleaf bat

Sundevall's roundleaf bat (Hipposideros caffer), also called Sundevall's leaf-nosed bat, is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae. These bats are very similar in appearance to the closely related Noack's roundleaf bat, and the two have in the past been considered to be the same species. Although more recent research suggests that they are distinct, taken together, they possibly represent a species group containing a number of cryptic species or subspecies that have yet to be distinguished.

Sundevall's roundleaf bat is a medium-sized bat, with a head-body length of 8 to 9 cm (3.1 to 3.5 in), and a wingspan of 20 to 29 cm (7.9 to 11.4 in). Adults have a body weight of 8 to 10 g (0.28 to 0.35 oz). They have long fur, which may be either grey or a bright golden-orange in colour, and brown wings. The fur is generally paler on the underside of the body.

The bats have large, rounded, ears with a well-developed antitragus, and a horseshoe-shaped nose-leaf, with a distinctive small projection on either side. There is also an additional serrated ridge of skin behind the main nose-leaf. Both females and males have an extra pair of teats in the pubic region. Although these... Wikipedia →