Chapter IV: Introduction (2)
This monkey is too well-known to need description. It is the common acting monkey of the _bandar-wallas_, the delight of all Anglo-Indian children, who go into raptures over the romance of _Munsur-ram_ and _Chameli_, their quarrels, parting, and reconciliation, so admirably acted by these miniature comedians.
NOTE.--For _Macacus rheso-similis_, Sclater, see P.Z.S. 1872, p. 495, pl. xxv., also P.Z.S. 1875, p. 418.
NO. 19. INUUS _vel_ MACACUS PELOPS. _Syn_.--MACACUS ASSAMENSIS. _The Hill Monkey_ (_Jerdon's No. 8_).
HABITAT.--The Himalayan ranges and Assam.
DESCRIPTION.--Brownish grey, somewhat mixed with slaty, and rusty brownish on the shoulders in some; beneath light ashy brown; fur fuller and more wavy than in _rhesus_; canine teeth long; of stout habit; callosities and face less red than in the last species (_Jerdon_). Face flesh-coloured, but interspersed with a few black hairs (_McClelland_).
NO. 20. INUUS _vel_ MACACUS NEMESTRINUS. _The Pig-tailed Monkey_.
HABITAT.--Tenasserim and the Malay Archipelago.
[Figure: _Macacus nemestrinus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--General colour grizzled brown; the piles annulated with dusky and fulvous; crown darker, and the middle of the back also darker; the hair lengthened on the fore-quarters; the back stripe extends along the tail, becoming almost black; the tail terminates in a bright ferruginous tuft. This monkey is noted for its docility, and in Bencoolen is trained to be useful as well as amusing. According to Sir Stamford Raffles it is taught to climb the cocoa palms for the fruit for its master, and to select only those that are ripe.
NO. 21. INUUS _vel_ MACACUS LEONINUS. _The Long-haired Pig-tailed Monkey_.
HABITAT.--Arracan.
DESCRIPTION.--A thick-set powerful animal, with a broad, rather flattened head above, and a moderately short, well clad, up-turned tail, about one-third the length of the body and head; the female smaller.--_Anderson_.
Face fleshy brown; whitish round the eyes and on the forehead; eyebrows brownish, a narrow reddish line running out from the external angle of the eye. The upper surface of the head is densely covered with short dark fur, yellowish brown, broadly tipped with black; the hair radiating from the vertex; on and around the ear the hair is pale grey; above the external orbital angle and on the sides of the face the hair is dense and directed backwards, pale greyish, obscurely annulated with dusky brown, and this is prolonged downwards to the middle of the throat. On the shoulders, back of the neck, and upper part of the thighs, the hairs are very long, fully three inches in the first-mentioned localities; the basal halves greyish; and the remainder ringed with eleven bands of dark brown and orange; the tips being dark. The middle and small of the back is almost black, the shorter hair there being wholly dark; and this colour is prolonged on the tail, which is tufted. The hair on the chest is annulated, but paler than on the shoulders, and it is especially dense on the lower part. The lower halves of the limbs are also well clad with annulated fur, like their outsides, but their upper halves internally and the belly are only sparsely covered with long brownish grey plain hairs, not ringed.
The female differs from the male in the absence of the black on the head and back, and in the hair of the under parts being brownish grey, without annulations. The shoulders somewhat brighter than the rest of the fur, which is yellowish olive; greyish olive on outside of limbs; dusky on upper surface of hands and feet; and black on upper surface of tail.
SIZE.--Length of male, head and body 23 inches; tail, without hair, 8 inches; with hair 10 inches.
The above description is taken from Dr. Anderson's account, 'Anat. and Zool. Res.,' where at page 54 will be found a plate of the skull showing the powerful canine teeth. Blyth mentions a fine male with hair on the shoulders four to five inches long.
NO. 22. INUUS _vel_ MACACUS ARCTOIDES. _The Brown Stump-tailed Monkey_.
HABITAT.--Cachar, Kakhyen Hills, east of Bhamo.
DESCRIPTION.--Upper surface of head and along the back dark brown, almost blackish; sides and limbs dark brown; the hair, which is very long, is ringed with light yellowish and dark brown, darker still at the tips; face red; tail short and stumpy, little over an inch long.
This monkey is one over which many naturalists have argued; it is synonymous with _Macacus speciosus_, _M. maurus_, _M. melanotus_, and was thought to be with _M. brunneus_ till Dr. Anderson placed the latter in a separate species on account of the non-annulation of its hair. It is essentially a denizen of the hills; it has been obtained in Cachar and in Upper Assam. Dr. Anderson got it in the Kakhyen Hills on the frontier of Yunnan, beyond which, he says, it spreads to the southeast to Cochin-China.
NO. 23. INUUS _vel_ MACACUS THIBETANUS. _The Thibetan Stump-tailed Monkey_.
DESCRIPTION.--Head large and whiskered; form robust; tail stumpy and clad; general colour of the animal brown; whiskers greyish; face nude and flesh-coloured, with a deep crimson flush round the eyes.
SIZE.--Two feet 9 inches; tail about 3 inches.
This large monkey, though not belonging to British India, inhabiting, it is said, "the coldest and least accessible forests of Eastern Thibet," is mentioned here, as the exploration of that country by travellers from India is attracting attention.
_GENUS MACACUS_.
Tail longer than in _Inuus_, and face not so lengthened; otherwise as in that genus.--_Jerdon_.
NO. 24. MACACUS RADIATUS. _The Madras Monkey_ (_Jerdon's No. 9_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Bandar_, Hindi; _Makadu_ or _Wanur_, Mahratti; _Kerda mahr_ of the Ghats; _Munga_, Canarese; _Koti_, Telegu; _Vella munthi_, Malabar.
HABITAT.--All over the southern parts of India, as far north as lat. 18 degrees.
[Figure: _Macacus radiatus_ and _Macacus pileatus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Of a dusky olive brown, paler and whitish underneath, ashy on outer sides of limbs; tail dusky brown above, whitish beneath; hairs on the crown of the head radiated.
SIZE.--Twenty inches; tail 15 inches.
Elliott remarks of this monkey that it inhabits not only the wildest jungles, but the most populous towns, and it is noted for its audacity in stealing fruit and grain from shops. Jerdon says: "It is the monkey most commonly found in menageries, and led about to show various tricks and feats of agility. It is certainly the most inquisitive and mischievous of its tribe, and its powers of mimicry are surpassed by none." It may be taught to turn a wheel regularly; it smokes tobacco without inconvenience.--_Horsfield_.
NO. 25. MACACUS PILEATUS (_vel_ SINICUS, _Lin_.). _The Capped Monkey_, or _Bonneted Macaque_ of _Cuvier_.
NATIVE NAME.--_Rilawa_, Singhalese.
HABITAT.--Ceylon and China.
DESCRIPTION.--Yellowish brown, with a slight shade of green in old specimens; in some the back is light chestnut brown; yellowish brown hairs on the crown of the head, radiating from the centre to the circumference; face flesh-coloured and beardless; ears, palms, soles, fingers, and toes blackish; irides reddish brown; callosities flesh-coloured; tail longish, terminating in short tuft.--_Kellaart_.
SIZE.--Head and body about 20 inches; tail 18 inches.
This is the _Macacus sinicus_ of Cuvier, and is very similar to the last species. In Ceylon it takes the place of our rhesus monkey with the conjurors, who, according to Sir Emerson Tennent, "teach it to dance, and in their wanderings carry it from village to village, clad in a grotesque dress, to exhibit its lively performances." It also, like the last, smokes tobacco; and one that belonged to the captain of a tug steamer, in which I once went down from Calcutta to the Sandheads, not only smoked, but chewed tobacco. Kellaart says of it: "This monkey is a lively, spirited animal, but easily tamed; particularly fond of making grimaces, with which it invariably welcomes its master and friends. It is truly astonishing to see the large quantity of food it will cram down its cheek pouches for future mastication."
NO. 26. MACACUS CYNOMOLGUS. _The Crab-eating Macaque_.
NATIVE NAME.--_Kra_, Malay.
HABITAT.--Tenasserim, Nicobars, Malay Archipelago.
[Figure: _Macacus cynomolgus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--"The leading features of this animal are its massive form, its large head closely set on the shoulders, its stout and rather short legs, its slender loins and heavy buttocks, its tail thick at the base" (Anderson). The general colour is similar to that of the Bengal rhesus monkey, but the skin of the chest and belly is bluish, the face livid, with a white area between the eyes and white eyelids. Hands and feet blackish.
SIZE.--About that of the Bengal rhesus.
According to Captain (now Sir Arthur) Phayre "these monkeys frequent the banks of salt-water creeks and devour shell-fish. In the cheek-pouch of the female were found the claws and body of a crab. There is not much on record concerning the habits of this monkey in its wild state beyond what is stated concerning its partiality for crabs, which can also, I believe, be said of the rhesus in the Bengal Sunderbunds."
NO. 27. MACACUS CARBONARIUS. _The Black-faced Crab-eating Monkey_.
HABITAT.--Burmah.
DESCRIPTION.--In all respects the same as the last, except that its face is blackish, with conspicuously white eyelids.
FAMILY LEMURIDAE.
The Indian members of this family belong to the sub-family named by Geoffroy _Nycticebinae_.
_GENUS NYCTICEBUS_.
NO. 28. NYCTICEBUS TARDIGRADUS. _The Slow-paced Lemur_ (_Jerdon's No. 10_).
NATIVE NAME.--_Sharmindi billi_, Hindi.
HABITAT.--Eastern Bengal, Assam, Garo Hills, Sylhet, Arracan.--_Horsfield_.
[Figure: _Loris gracilis_ and _Nycticebus tardigradus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Dark ashy grey, with a darker band down middle of back, beneath lighter grey; forehead in some dark, with a narrow white stripe between the eyes, disappearing above them; ears and round the eye dark; tail very short.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Length about 14 to 15 inches; tail 5/8 of an inch.
Nocturnal in its habits; sleeping during the day in holes of trees, and coming out to feed at night. Sir William Jones describes one kept by him for some time; it appeared to have been gentle, though at times petulant when disturbed; susceptible of cold; slept from sunrise to sunset rolled up like a hedgehog. Its food was chiefly plantains, and mangoes when in season. Peaches, mulberries, and guavas, it did not so much care for, but it was most eager after grasshoppers, which it devoured voraciously. It was very particular in the performance of its toilet, cleaning and licking its fur. Cuvier also notices this last peculiarity, and with regard to its diet says it eats small birds as well as insects. These animals are occasionally to be bought in the Calcutta market. A friend of mine had a pair which were a source of great amusement to his guests after dinner. (See Appendix C, p.526.)
_GENUS LORIS_.
Body and limbs slender; no tail; eyes very large, almost contiguous; nose acute.
NO. 29. LORIS GRACILIS. _The Slender Lemur_ (_Jerdon's No. 11_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Tevangar_, Tamil; _Dewantsipilli_, Telegu. (_Oona happslava_, Singhalese.--_Kellaart_.)
HABITAT.--Southern India and Ceylon.
DESCRIPTION.--Above greyish rufescent (tawny snuff brown: Kellaart); beneath a paler shade; a white triangular spot on forehead, extending down the nose; fur short, dense, and soft; ears thin, rounded (Jerdon). A hooped claw on inner toes; nails of other toes flat; posterior third of palms and soles hairy (Kellaart).
SIZE.--About 8 inches; arm, 5; leg, 5-1/2.
This, like the last, is also nocturnal in its habits, and from the extreme slowness of its movements is called in Ceylon "the Ceylon sloth." Its diet is varied--fruit, flower, and leaf buds, insects, eggs, and young birds. Sir Emerson Tennent says the Singhalese assert that it has been known to strangle pea-fowl at night and feast on the brain, but this I doubt. Smaller birds it might overcome. Jerdon states that in confinement it will eat boiled rice, plantains, honey or syrup and raw meat. McMaster, at page 6 of his 'Notes on Jerdon,' gives an interesting extract from an old account of 'Dr. John Fryer's Voyage to East India and Bombain,' in which he describes this little animal as "Men of the Woods, or more truly Satyrs;" asleep during the day; but at "Night they Sport and Eat." "They had Heads like an owl. Bodied like a monkey without Tails. Only the first finger of the Right Hand was armed with a claw like a bird, otherwise they had hands and feet which they walk upright on, not pronely, as other Beasts do."
These little creatures double themselves up when they sleep, bending the head down between their legs. Although so sluggish generally, Jerdon says they can move with considerable agility when they choose.
SUB-ORDER PLEUROPTERA.--FAMILY GALAEOPITHECIDAE.
There is a curious link between the Lemurs and the Bats in the Colugos. (_Galaeopithecus_): their limbs are connected with a membrane as in the Flying Squirrels, by which they can leap and float for a hundred yards on an inclined plane. They are mild, inoffensive animals, subsisting on fruits and leaves. Cuvier places them after the Bats, but they seem properly to link the Lemurs and the frugivorous Bats. As yet they have not been found in India proper, but are common in the Malayan Peninsula, and have been found in Burmah.
NO. 30. GALAEOPITHECUS VOLANS. _The Flying Lemur_.
NATIVE NAME.--_Myook-hloung-pyan_, Burmese.
HABITAT.--Mergui; the Malayan Peninsula.
[Figure: _Galaeopithecus volans_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Fur olive brown, mottled with irregular whitish spots and blotches; the pile is short, but exquisitely soft; head and brain very small; tail long and prehensile. The membrane is continued from each side of the neck to the fore feet; thence to the hind feet, again to the tip of the tail. This animal is also nocturnal in its habits, and very sluggish in its motions by day, at which time it usually hangs from a branch suspended by its fore hands, its mottled back assimilating closely with the rugged bark of the tree; it is exclusively herbivorous, possessing a very voluminous stomach, and long convoluted intestines. Wallace says of it, that its brain is very small, and it possesses such tenacity of life that it is very difficult to kill; he adds that it is said to have only one at a birth, and one he shot had a very small blind naked little creature clinging closely to its breast, which was quite bare and much wrinkled. Raffles, however, gives two as the number produced at each birth. Dr. Cantor says that in confinement plantains constitute the favourite food, but deprived of liberty it soon dies. In its wild state it "lives entirely on young fruits and leaves; those of the cocoanut and _Bombax pentandrum_ are its favourite food, and it commits great injury to the plantations of these."--_Horsfield's_ 'Cat. Mam.' Regarding its powers of flight, Wallace, in his 'Travels in the Malay Archipelago,' says: "I saw one of these animals run up a tree in a rather open space, and then glide obliquely through the air to another tree on which it alighted near its base, and immediately began to ascend. I paced the distance from one tree to the other, and found it to be seventy yards, and the amount of descent not more than thirty-five or forty feet, or less than one in five. This, I think, proves that the animal must have some power of guiding itself through the air, otherwise in so long a distance it would have little chance of alighting exactly upon the trunk."
There is a carefully prepared skeleton of this animal in the Indian Museum in Calcutta.
ORDER CARNARIA.
CHEIROPTERA.
It may seem strange to many that such an insignificant, weird little creature as a bat should rank so high in the animal kingdom as to be but a few removes from man. It has, however, some striking anatomical affinities with the last Order, _Quadrumana_, sufficient to justify its being placed in the next link of the great chain of creation.
[Figure: Sternum of _Pteropus_.]
"Bats have the arms, fore-arms and fingers excessively elongated, so as to form with the membrane that occupies their intervals, real wings, the surface of which is equally or more extended than in those of birds. Hence they fly high and with great rapidity."--_Cuvier_. They suckle their young at the breast, but some of them have pubic warts resembling mammae. The muscles of the chest are developed in proportion, and the sternum has a medial ridge something like that of a bird. They are all nocturnal, with small eyes (except in the case of the frugivorous bats), large ears, and in some cases membranous appendages to the nostrils, which may possibly be for the purpose of guiding themselves in the dark, for it is proved by experiment that bats are not dependent on eyesight for guidance, and one naturalist has remarked that, in a certain species of bat which has no facial membrane, this delicacy of perception was absent. I have noticed this in one species, _Cynopterus marginatus_, one of which flew into my room not long ago, and which repeatedly dashed itself against a glass door in its efforts to escape. I had all the other doors closed.
Bats are mostly insectivorous; a few are fruit-eaters, such as our common flying-fox. They produce from one to two at a birth, which are carried about by the mother and suckled at the breast, this peculiarity being one of the anatomical details alluded to as claiming for the bats so high a place.
Bats are divided into four sub-families--Pteropodidae, Vampyridae, Noctilionidae, and Vespertilionidae.
MEGACHIROPTERA.
SUB-FAMILY PTEROPODIDAE.
_GENUS PTEROPUS_.
These are frugivorous bats of large size, differing, as remarked by Jerdon, so much in their dentition from the insectivorous species that they seem to lead through the flying Lemurs (_Colugos_) directly to the _Quadrumana_. The dentition is more adapted to their diet; they have cutting incisors to each jaw, and grinders with flat crowns, and their intestines are longer than those of the insectivorous bats. They produce but one at birth, and the young ones leave their parents as soon as they can provide for themselves. The tongue is covered with rough papillae. They have no tail. These bats and some of the following genus, which are also frugivorous, are distinguished from the rest of the bats by a claw on the first or index finger, which is short.
Dental formula: Inc., 4/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/3--3; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 31. PTEROPUS EDWARDSII _vel_ MEDIUS. _The Common Flying Fox_ (_Jerdon's No. 12_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Badul_, Bengali and Mahratti; _Wurbagul_, Hindi; _Toggul bawali_, Canarese; _Sikurayi_, Telegu.
HABITAT.--All through India, Ceylon, and Burmah.
[Figure: The Flying Fox at Home.]
DESCRIPTION.--Head and nape rufous black; neck and shoulders golden yellow (the hair longer); back dark brown; chin dark; rest of body beneath fulvous or rusty brown; interfemoral membrane brownish black.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Length, 12 to 14 inches; extent of wings, 46 to 52 inches.
These bats roost on trees in vast numbers. I have generally found them to prefer tamarinds of large size. Some idea of the extent of these colonies may be gathered from observations by McMaster, who attempted to calculate the number in a colony. He says: "In five minutes a friend and I counted upwards of six hundred as they passed over head, _en route_ to their feeding grounds; supposing their nightly exodus to continue for twenty minutes, this would give upwards of two thousand in one roosting place, exclusive of those who took a different direction."
[Figure: Head of _Pteropus medius_.]
Tickell's account of these colonies is most graphic, though Emerson Tennent has also given a most interesting and correct account of their habits. The former writes:--"From the arrival of the first comer until the sun is high above the horizon, a scene of incessant wrangling and contention is enacted among them, as each endeavours to secure a higher and better place, or to eject a neighbour from too close vicinage. In these struggles the bats hook themselves along the branches, scrambling about hand over hand with some speed, biting each other severely, striking out with the long claw of the thumb, shrieking and cackling without intermission. Each new arrival is compelled to fly several times round the tree, being threatened from all points, and, when he eventually hooks on, he has to go through a series of combats, and be probably ejected two or three times before he makes good his tenure." For faithful portraying, no one could improve on this description. These bats are exceeding strong on the wing. I was aware that they went long distances in search of food, but I was not aware of the power they had for sustained flight till the year 1869, when, on my way to England on furlough, I discovered a large flying fox winging his way towards our vessel, which was at that time more than two hundred miles from land. Exhausted, it clung on to the fore-yard arm; and a present of a rupee induced a Lascar to go aloft and seize it, which he did after several attempts. The voracity with which it attacked some plantains showed that it had been for some time deprived of food, probably having been blown off shore by high winds. Hanging head-downwards from its cage, it stuffed the fruit into its cheeks, monkey-fashion, and then seemed to chew it at leisure. When I left the steamer at Suez it remained in the captain's possession, and seemed to be tame and reconciled to its imprisonment, tempered by a surfeit of plantains. In flying over water they frequently dip down to touch the surface. Jerdon was in doubt whether they did this to drink or not, but McMaster feels sure that they do this in order to drink, and that the habit is not peculiar to the _Pteropodidae_, as he has noticed other bats doing the same. Colonel Sykes states that he "can personally testify that their flesh is delicate and without disagreeable flavour;" and another colonel of my acquaintance once regaled his friends on some flying fox cutlets, which were pronounced "not bad." Dr. Day accuses these bats of intemperate habits; drinking the toddy from the earthen pots on the cocoanut trees, and flying home intoxicated. The wild almond is a favourite fruit.
Mr. Rainey, who has been a careful observer of animals for years, states that in Bengal these bats prefer clumps of bamboos for a resting place, and feed much on the fruit of the betel-nut palm when ripe. Another naturalist, Mr. G. Vidal, writes that in Southern India the _P. medius_ feeds chiefly on the green drupe or nut of the Alexandrian laurel (_Calophyllum inophyllum_), the kernels of which contain a strong-smelling green oil on which the bats fatten amazingly; and then they in turn yield, when boiled down, an oil which is recommended as an excellent stimulative application for the hair. I noticed in Seonee a curious superstition to the effect that a bone of this bat tied on to the ankle by a cord of black cowhair is a sovereign remedy, according to the natives, for rheumatism in the leg. Tickell states that these bats produce one at a time in March or April, and they continue a fixture on the mother till the end of May or beginning of June.
NO. 32. PTEROPUS LESCHENAULTII (CYNONYCTERIS AMPLEXICAUDATA). _The Fulvous Fox-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 13_).
Dobson places this bat in the sub-group _Cynonycteris_. It seems to differ from _Pteropus_ only, as far as I can see, in having a small distinct tail, though the above-quoted author considers it closely allied to the next genus.
HABITAT.--The Carnatic, Madras and Trichinopoly; stated also procurable at Calcutta and Pondicherry (_Jerdon_); Ceylon (_Kellaart_).
DESCRIPTION.--Fur short and downy; fulvous ashy, or dull light ashy brown colour, denser and paler beneath; the hairs whitish at the base; membranes dark brown.
SIZE.--Length, 5 to 5-1/2 inches; extent of wing, 18 to 20 inches.
More information is required regarding the habits of this bat.
_GENUS CYNOPTERUS_.
This genus has four molars less than the last, a shorter muzzle; the cheek-bones or zygomatic arch more projecting; tongue rather longer and more tapering, and slightly extensile.
Dental formula: Inc., 4/4 or 4/2; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/3--3; molars, 2--2/2--2.
NO. 33. CYNOPTERUS MARGINATUS. _The Small Fox-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 14_).
NATIVE NAME.--_Chamgadili_, Hindi; _Coteekan voulha_, Singhalese.
HABITAT.--India generally, and Ceylon.
[Figure: _Cynopterus marginatus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--General colour fulvous olivaceous, paler beneath and with an ashy tinge; ears with a narrow margin of white (_Jerdon_.) A reddish smear on neck and shoulders of most specimens; membranes dusky brown. Females paler (_Kellaart_).
SIZE.--Length, 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 inches; extent of wing, 17 to 20 inches.
This bat is found all over India; it is frugivorous exclusively, though some of this sub-order are insectivorous. Blyth says he kept some for several weeks; they would take no notice of the buzz of an insect held to them, but are ravenous eaters of fruit, each devouring its own weight at a meal, voiding its food but little changed whilst slowly munching away; of guava it swallows the juice only. Blyth's prisoners were females, and after a time they attracted a male which hovered about them for some days, roosting near them in a dark staircase; he was also caught, with one of the females who had escaped and joined him. Dr. Dobson writes that in three hours one of these bats devoured twice its own weight. This species usually roosts in trees.
NO. 34. MACROGLOSSUS (PTEROPUS) MINIMUS. _The Tenasserim Fox-Bat_.
NATIVE NAME.--_Lowo-assu_ (dog-bat), Javanese.
HABITAT.--The Himalayas, Burmah, Tenasserim, and the Indian Archipelago.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears half length of head, narrow and rounded at tip; face abruptly narrowed in front of eyes; muzzle long, narrow, cylindrical; lower jaw slightly projecting; eyes large; tongue very long, last third attenuated, covered with brush-like papillae; interfemoral membrane very narrow, especially at root of tail; fur reddish brown, and very long.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-3/10 inches.
Like other _Pteropi_ this bat feeds on fruit of every description, but particularly attacks the various cultivated varieties of _Eugenia_ (Jamoon).
_GENUS EONYCTERIS_.
Muzzle long and cylindrical; nostrils scarcely projecting; upper lip with a shallow vertical groove in front; _index finger without a claw_; thumb short; part of the terminal phalanx included in the wing membrane; metacarpal bone of the second finger equal to the index finger in length; tail short and distinct; the base contained in the narrow interfemoral membrane; tongue long, as in _Macroglossus_.
Dentition: Inc., 4/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 35. EONYCTERIS SPELAEA.
HABITAT.--Burmah.
DESCRIPTION.--Head long; muzzle narrow, cylindrical, abruptly narrowed in front of the eyes; nostrils with an intervening emargination, which also passes down to the lips; tongue very long and pointed; ears conical, with rounded tips; body clothed with very short and thinly-spread fur of a uniform dark brown colour; the fur on the head extends only as far as the inner corners of the eye, leaving the rest of the face naked; tail half an inch. On each side, and a little behind the anal opening, are two small, kidney-shaped subcutaneous glandular bodies.
SIZE.--Head and body, 4 inches; tail, 1/2 inch.
Found in Farm Caves, Moulmein. The absence of the claw on the index finger is specially to be noted.
MICROCHIROPTERA.
SUB-FAMILY VAMPYRIDAE.
_GENUS MEGADERMA_.
Bats with simple or complicated nose-leaves or membranes. The conch of the ear very large, and joined together on the top of the head; tragus large and bifurcated; nasal membranes complicated; no tail; wings remarkably ample. They have four incisors below but none above, the intermaxillaries remaining cartilaginous.
Dental formula: Inc., 0/4; can., 1--1/1--1; pre-m., 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 36. MEGADERMA LYRA. _The Large-eared Vampire Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 15_).
HABITAT.--India and Ceylon.
[Figure: _Megaderma lyra_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Above ashy blue, slaty or pale mouse colour; albescent or yellowish ashy beneath; nasal appendage large, oblong, free at the tip, reaching to the base of the ears with a fold down the centre; tragus (_oreillon_) cordate, two-lobed, anterior long, narrow and pointed, posterior lobe half the height and rounded; muzzle truncated; under-lip cleft; wing membranes dark brown.
SIZE.--Head and body, 3 or 3-1/2 inches; wing extent, 14 to 19 inches.
Very abundant in old buildings. They are beyond doubt blood-suckers. Blyth noticed one fly into his room one evening with a small _vespertilio_, which it dropped on being chased. The smaller bat was weak from loss of blood, and next morning (the Megaderm having been caught), on both bats being put into the same cage, the little one was again attacked and devoured; it was seized both times behind the ear. McMaster writes that in Rangoon he had a tame canary killed by a bat, and the bird's mate soon afterwards was destroyed in the same way. The case was clearly proved.
Mr. Frith informed Mr. Blyth that these bats were in the habit of resorting to the verandah of his house at Mymensing, and that every morning the ground under them was strewed with the hind quarters of frogs, and the wings of large grasshoppers and crickets. On one occasion the remains of a small fish were observed; but frogs appeared to be their chief diet--never toads; and of a quiet evening these animals could be distinctly heard crunching the heads and smaller bones of their victims.
NO. 37. MEGADERMA SPECTRUM. _The Cashmere Vampire_ (_Jerdon's No. 16_).
HABITAT.--Cashmere.
DESCRIPTION.--Above slaty cinereous, whitish beneath; the vertical nose-leaf of moderate size, oval; inner lobe of tragus ovate (_Jerdon_).
SIZE.--Two and three-quarter inches.
Dobson makes this bat synonymous with the last.
NO. 38. MEGADERMA SPASMA.
HABITAT.--Tenasserim, Ceylon.
[Figure: _Megaderma spasma_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Muzzle, ear-conch, and tragus similar to those of _M. lyra_; the posterior portion of the tragus, however, is longer and more attenuated upwards, and more acutely pointed; the nose-leaf is shorter, with convex sides; but the anterior concave disc is considerably larger, and the base of the thickened process is cordate; thumbs and wings as in _M. lyra_; interfemoral membrane deeper; the calcaneum stronger; colour the same.
SIZE.--Head and body, about 3 inches. This bat is alluded to by Jerdon as _M. Horsfieldii_.
RHINOLOPHINAE.
Nasal leaf complicated, and crests resting on the forehead, presenting more or less the figure of a horse-shoe; tail long and placed in the interfemoral membrane; ears large, but separate, and not joined at the base, as in the last genus; without a tragus, but often with a lobe at the base of the outer margin; wings large and long; forefinger of a single joint.
_GENUS RHINOLOPHUS_.
Nose-leaf cordate, or semi-orbicular, bi-lobed in front of the nostrils; a longitudinal crest along the nose and an erect frontal leaf posteriorly more or less lanceolate.--_Jerdon_.
Dental formula: Inc., 2/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 39. RHINOLOPHUS PERNIGER _vel_ LUCTUS. _The Large Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 17_).
HABITAT.--Nepaul, Darjeeling, Khasya Hills.
[Figure: _Rhinolophus luctus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Ears very large, much longer than the head; broad, acutely pointed; nasal apparatus very complicated; the lower leaf very large, concealing the upper lip like a door knocker; the upper leaf like a graduated spire; ears transversely striate; a rather large semi-circular lobe at base of ear; fur long, dense, soft, and lax, slightly curled or woolly black with a silvery grizzle, or greyish-black or rich chestnut-brown.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Length, 3-3/4; tail, 1-3/4; wing expanse, 17 inches.
NO. 40. RHINOLOPHUS MITRATUS. _The Mitred Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 18_).
HABITAT.--Chybassa, Central India, Mussoorie(?)
DESCRIPTION.--Ears large; anti-helix moderately developed; upper leaf triangular acute; tail extending beyond the tibia; color above light brown; paler beneath.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/2 inches; tail, 1-1/2 inch; wing expanse, 12 to 14 inches.
NO. 41. RHINOLOPHUS TRAGATUS _vel_ FERRUM-EQUINUM. _The Dark-brown Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 19_).
HABITAT.--Nepaul, Mussoorie.
[Figure: _Rhinolophus ferrum-equinum_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Upper process like a barbed spear-head; central one small and narrow, a little expanded at the summit; anti-tragus less developed than usual; lips simple; colour a uniform deep brown, with tips of the hair paler, and somewhat rusty.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-5/8 inches; tail, 1-7/8 inch; wing, 15-1/2 inches.
The tail of this species seems unusually long. It is found in cavities of rock, and issues forth soon after dusk--sooner, according to Hodgson, than the species of _vespertilio_.
NO. 42. RHINOLOPHUS PEARSONII. _Pearson's Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 20_).
HABITAT.--Lower Himalayan range, Darjeeling, Mussoorie, &c.
DESCRIPTION.--Colour above dark brown, with a slight shade of chestnut; underneath brown, with a sooty cast; fur very long, dense and soft; ears distinct, with an additional rounded lobe below, measuring anteriorly nearly three-fourths of an inch; point of the facial crest moderately developed; length from the tip of the nose to root of tail three inches; tail half an inch; length of fore-arm two inches; expanse of the wings eleven inches. Although allied to Mr. Hodgson's _R. tragatus_, possesses distinct characters.--_Horsfield_.
SIZE.--As given by Horsfield above.
This bat was first sent from Darjeeling by Mr. J. T. Pearson, and was named after him. It has also, according to Jerdon, been found by Captain Hutton at Mussoorie; it is therefore reasonable to suppose that it inhabits the whole range of the lower Himalayas. One striking difference between it and the last species is the very short tail, and it is easily to be recognised by the great length of the fur.
NO. 43. RHINOLOPHUS AFFINIS. _The Allied Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 21_).
HABITAT.--Ceylon, Burmah, and perhaps the Malabar coast.
DESCRIPTION.--Above bright red ferruginous brown; tips of hair darker, paler beneath; ears pointed and external; edge deeply emarginated; internal edge and basal third of external surface hairy; anti-helix well developed; nasal process apparently very similar to that of _R. mitratus_ (_Kellaart_). Upper leaf triangular, emarginate at the tip, reaching above the base of the ears (_Jerdon_).
SIZE.--Head and body about 2-3/10 inches; tail, 1 inch; wing extent, 12 inches.
This bat seems to vary much in colour. Kellaart says some are of a brighter red than others, and a few had a yellower tinge. Another marked variety was of a uniform pale yellow brown.
NO. 44. RHINOLOPHUS ROUXI. _The Rufous Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 22_).
HABITAT.--India generally.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears large, pointed, externally notched; tragus broad; tips of upper nose-leaf triangular, with its sides well emarginate, reaching above the base of the ears; no upper incisors [as in _Megaderma lyra_]; lower molars only five; canines very large; fur short, crisp; colour above smoky brown in some, reddish brown in others, and golden rufous in some; beneath paler.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Length, 2-3/8 inches; tail, 1-1/8; wing expanse, 13 inches.
Hodgson considers this bat as allied to the two following species. It is the _R. lepidus_ of Blyth.
NO. 45. RHINOLOPHUS MACROTIS. _The Large-eared Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 23_).
HABITAT.--Lower Himalayas.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears very large, broad, oval, with pointed recurved tip, and a large obtuse tragus; anterior central crest of nose-leaf produced in front over the top of the flat transverse front edge; hinder leaf lanceolate triangular; above sooty brown or light earthy olive-brown, paler below, some with a rufous or Isabelline tint; no pubic teats.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Head and body, 1-3/4 inch; tail, 3/4; wing expanse, 9-3/4.
NO. 46. RHINOLOPHUS SUB-BADIUS. _The Bay Leaf-Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 24_).
HABITAT.--Nepaul.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears not larger than the head, obtusely pointed and ovoid; nasal appendage quadrate, with a transverse bar nearly surmounting it; upper leaf triangular, with slightly emarginate sides; clear brown above, paler below and on head and face.
SIZE.--Head and body, 1-1/2 inch; tail, 1-1/4; wing expanse, 7-1/2.--_Jerdon_.
NO. 47. RHINOLOPHUS RAMMANIKA (_Kellaart_).
HABITAT.--Ceylon.
DESCRIPTION.--Above rufescent, beneath ashy brown; face slightly fulvous; round the base of the ears and on the sides of the posterior half of the body bright fulvous; tail enclosed in the interfemoral membrane.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/2 inches; tail, 1; wing expanse, 10 inches.
This is a doubtful species. Dr. Kellaart got one from Amanapoora hill at Kaduganava. He says: "As the specimen reached us in a dried condition, we are unable to say anything more about its nasal processes than that in place of a transverse process above the nostrils it had a small triangular peak over the usual horse-shoe process surrounding the nasal opening. This triangular crest was hairy; superiorly there was no appearance of a sac above it to the best of our recollection."
NO. 48. RHINOLOPHUS ANDAMANENSIS.
HABITAT.--Southern Andaman Island.
DESCRIPTION (_apud_ Dobson).--Like _R. affinis_ generally, but the anterior horizontal horse-shoe shaped membrane is very broad, completely concealing the muzzle when viewed from above, as in _R. Pearsonii_; the posterior terminal leaf is also much longer, produced backwards between the ears, and not concave on the sides as in _R. affinis_. The thumb is also much longer. Fur bright reddish brown above and beneath.
NO. 49. RHINOLOPHUS MINOR.
HABITAT.--Burmah, Yunan.
DESCRIPTION.--Light brown above, greyish brown beneath; ears slightly shorter than the head, sub-acutely pointed; anti-tragus large, separated by a deep angular notch; lower lip with three vertical grooves.
SIZE.--Length of head and body from 1 to 1-3/4 inch.
NO. 50. RHINOLOPHUS COELOPHYLLUS.
HABITAT.--Burmah.
DESCRIPTION.--Fur brown, with whitish roots, light brownish white below; ears large, with pointed tips projecting outwards; "anti-tragus large, separated by an angular emargination from the outer margin of the ear; horse-shoe large; horizontal margins of central nose-leaf triangular, small; erect portion rather short, with parallel sides and rounded summit, meeting the connected vertical process at the same level" (_Dobson_). For a more detailed description see Dobson's Monograph, page 53. Three vertical grooves on lower lip.
SIZE.--Length of head and body about 2 inches.
NO. 51. RHINOLOPHUS GAROENSIS.
HABITAT.--Garo Hills, Assam; Himalayas (Mussoorie).
DESCRIPTION (_apud_ Dobson).--Ears acutely pointed, with a large anti-tragus, as in _R. affinis_; anterior vertical process of the sella maintaining the same breadth upwards and rounded off above, considerably exceeded in height by the upper edge of the connecting process, which develops a long acutely pointed projection; terminal portion of the posterior leaf broad with straight sides, forming an almost equilateral triangle.
Wing membrane from the ankles, inter femoral membrane square behind; extreme tip of the tail free.
SIZE.--Length of head and body about 1.5 inch.
This bat is figured (head only) in Dobson's Monograph, page 48.
NO. 52. RHINOLOPHUS PETERSII.
HABITAT.--India. Precise locality unknown.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears acutely pointed, with an emargination immediately beneath the tip; anti-tragus large, separated from the outer margin by a deep angular incision; nose-leaf horizontal, horse-shoe-shaped, not so broad as the muzzle; vertical part of the sella almost same breadth upwards, and rounded off above, exceeded considerably in height by the upper margin of the posterior connecting process; lower lip with three vertical grooves; fur dark brown above, greyish brown beneath.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, 2.5 inches; tail, 1 inch.
There are two good woodcuts of the head of this bat in Dobson's Monograph.
NO. 53. RHINOLOPHUS TRIFOLIATUS.
HABITAT.--East coast of India.
DESCRIPTION.--Very much like _R. perniger_ (_luctus_), but is distinguished by its smaller size and by the more pointed vertical process of the central nose-leaf, which in the other is truncated.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, 2 inches; tail about 1 inch.
_GENUS HIPPOSIDEROS_ (_GRAY_) VEL _PHYLLORHINA_ (_BONAPARTE_).
Nasal-leaf broad, depressed, transverse; ears with transverse wrinkles; a circular sac behind the nasal crest, which can be turned inside out; when alarmed the animal blows it out, and then withdraws it at each breath; it contains a waxy matter of green or yellow colour. Blyth thinks that this sac is affected by the amorous season, as in the case of the infra-orbital cavities of various ruminants and analogous glandular follicles in other animals.
This genus is also distinguishable from the last by the form of the ear conch, the small size of the anti-tragus, and, as Dr. Dobson particularly points out, by the presence of _two_ joints only in all the toes, as also by the number and character of the teeth, which are as follows:--
Inc., 2/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 54. HIPPOSIDEROS ARMIGER. _The Large Horse-shoe Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 25_).
HABITAT.--Lower Himalaya ranges; Ceylon.
DESCRIPTION.--Nasal-leaf large and square; lips with a triple fold of skin on each side; tragus vaguely developed and wavily emarginate; of a uniform light-brown colour, with maroon tips to the hairs of the upper parts; membranes black.
SIZE.--Head and body, 4-1/2 inches; tail, 2-1/2; wing expanse, 22.
Jerdon makes this out to be the same as Kellaart's _H. lankadiva_ and the Malayan _H. nobilis_, but those are synonymous with _Phyllorhina diadema_. Kellaart supposed it to be identical with _H. insignis_, which will be found further on as _Phyllorhina larvata_, all those bats closely resembling each other in a general way. I think this No. 25 of Jerdon is the same as Peter's _Phyllorhina armigera_. Hutton found it at Darjeeling, and writes of it as follows:--
"When captured alive the large ears are kept in a constant state of rapid tremulous motion, and the animal emits a low purring sound, which becomes a sharp scream when alarmed or irritated. When suspended at rest the tail and inter-femoral membrane are turned up, not in front, like the _Rhinolophi_, but behind, over the lower part of the back; neither does it appear to envelope itself in its wings so completely as does _R. luctus._" He then goes on to say he has noticed the tremor of the ears and facial crests in all the _Rhinolophi_ when disturbed, and concludes with a graphic description of this species, sallying forth in the evening to prey upon the noisy _Cicadas_; leisurely wheeling with noiseless, cautious flight round some wide-spreading oak, "scanning each branch as he slowly passes by--now rising to a higher circle, and then perchance descending to the lower branches, until at length, detecting the unfortunate minstrel, it darts suddenly into the tree, and snatching the still screaming insect from its perch, bears it away."
Jerdon procured specimens at Darjeeling, and Kellaart says it is found in great abundance at Kandy and its neighbourhood; Kurnegalle Tunnel swarms with them.
NO. 55. HIPPOSIDEROS SPEORIS. _The Indian Horse-shoe Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 26_).
HABITAT.--India generally and Ceylon.
DESCRIPTION.--Mouse brown or fulvous brown. Occasionally golden fulvous and sometimes dusky black above, paler beneath; membranes dusky brown; interfemoral membrane narrow, enclosing the tail except the last half joint (about 2-10ths of an inch), which is free.
Ear large, erect and pointed, rounded at the base and emarginated on the outer edge; nasal process complicated. "Males have a frontal sac; females none" (_Kellaart_). Pubis naked, with two inguinal warts.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2 inches; tail, 1-2/10; wing expanse, 12.
Inhabits old buildings, wells, &c.
NO. 56. HIPPOSIDEROS MURINUS. _The Little Horse-shoe Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 27_).
HABITAT.--Southern India, Ceylon, and Burmah.
DESCRIPTION.--Muzzle short; body short and thick; a transverse frontal leaf with a sac behind it; no folds of skin on each side of the horse-shoe as in the last species; ears large, naked and rounded; colour dusky brown or mouse, sometimes light fawn; wing membrane blackish; interfemoral membrane large, and including the tail all but the tip.
SIZE.--Head and body, 1-4/5 inch; tail, 1-1/5 inch; wing expanse, 10.
Jerdon says the mouse-coloured variety is common in the Carnatic, but he has only seen the light fulvous race on the Nilgheries; but Mr. Elliot procured both in the southern Mahratta country. A dark variety of this bat was called _Rhinolophus ater_ by Templeton, and _H. atratus_ by Kellaart; in other respects it is identical, only a little smaller.
NO. 57. HIPPOSIDEROS CINERACEUS. _The Ashy Horse-shoe Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 28_).
HABITAT.--Punjab Salt range.
DESCRIPTION.--Similar to the last, but larger, and I should think the argument against _H. atratus_ would apply to this as a distinct species.
NO. 58. HIPPOSIDEROS LARVATUS. _Syn_.--PHYLLORHINA LARVATA.
HABITAT.--Arracan.
DESCRIPTION.--The fur of the upper part bright fulvous; more or less tinged with maroon on the back, lighter underneath; membranes dusky, but tinged with the prevailing colour of the fur; ears angulated; a minute false molar in front of the carnassial in the upper jaw.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-3/4 inches; tail, 1-1/4; wing extent, 12.
Kellaart writes of this bat under his _H. aureus_. He describes it as head, neck, and body of a bright golden yellow, with a slight maroon shade on the tips of the hairs on the back. Females paler coloured. Frontal sac only in males; the waxy matter of a yellow colour, and quite transparent.
NO. 59. HIPPOSIDEROS VULGARIS. _Syn_.--PHYLLORHINA LARVATA. _The Common Malayan Horse-shoe Bat_.
HABITAT.--Arracan and Malayana.
DESCRIPTION.--"It differs from the last in being rather smaller, and of a brown colour above, much paler at the base of the hairs and at their extreme tips, and lighter coloured below; the ears more apiculated, or rather they appear so from being strongly emarginated externally towards the tip."--_Blyth_.
SIZE.--2-3/10 inches; tail 1-2/10; wing expanse about 12.
NO. 60. HIPPOSIDEROS BLYTHII.
HABITAT.--Ceylon, Fort Frederic.
DESCRIPTION.--Above surface colour a rich dark tawny brown; base of hairs much lighter coloured, of a brighter yellow tinge; beneath paler; face partially blackish; ears black; tip of tail excerted; no frontal sac; membranes blackish; nasal processes as in _H. speoris_.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-2/10 inches; tail, 1; wing expanse, 12.
Dr. Kellaart considered this a new and undescribed species, distinguished from _H. speoris_ and _H. vulgaris_ (_vel Templetonii_--Kellaart) by the greater length of the fore-arm, which is two inches. This remark however does not apply to _vulgaris_, of which Kellaart himself gives two inches as the length of the radius, and Blyth gives two and a quarter. The absence of the frontal sac would have been a greater proof, but both specimens on which Kellaart made his observations were females; and as colouring is so varied in the bat tribe as to preclude the division of species on this ground, I think we may put this down as a doubtful species on which more information is desirable.
NO. 61. PHYLLORHINA DIADEMA.
HABITAT.--India generally; Ceylon and Burmah.
DESCRIPTION.--The fur with three shades--buff, then reddish brown with ashy tips, underneath greyish or pale brown. "The hinder erect nose-leaf," according to Dobson's description, "equals the horse-shoe and slightly exceeds the sella in width, its free margin forming a segment of the circumference of a circle, with a small blunt projection in the centre and three vertical ridges on its concave front surface; sella large, with a prominent ridge in the centre, forming a small projection above and one smaller on each side; sides of the muzzle with prominent vertical leaves, three on each side; no frontal pore."
There is a good figure of the head of this bat in Cuvier's 'Animal Kingdom,' Carpenter's and Westwood's edition, under the name of _Rhinolophus nobilis_. It is the same also as Kellaart's _Hipposideros lankadiva_. Captain Hutton, who was a keen observer of the habits of the bats at Mussoorie, says of this one: "Like _R. affinis_, this species may frequently be heard during its flight cracking and crunching the hard wings of beetles, which in the evening hours are usually abundant among the trees; the teeth are strong, and the _tout ensemble_ of its aspect is not unlike that of a bull-dog."--'Proc. Zoo. Soc.,' 1872, page 701.
NO. 62. PHYLLORHINA MASONI.
HABITAT.--Burmah (Moulmein).
DESCRIPTION.--This bat resembles the last closely; such difference as exists is that the concave surface of the terminal nose-leaf is divided into two cells only by a single central vertical ridge, and from the under surface of the juncture of the mandible a small bony process projects downwards about equal to the lower canine tooth in vertical extent, and covered by the integument.
There is an excellent figure of this bat in Dobson's Monograph, from whence I have also taken the above description.
NO. 63. PHYLLORHINA NICOBARENSIS.
HABITAT.--Nicobar Island.
DESCRIPTION.--"Ears large, acute; outer margin slightly concave beneath the tip; no frontal sac behind the nose-leaf; upper margin of the transverse terminal leaf simple, forming an arc of a circle, folded back and overhanging the concave front surface, which is divided into _two_ cells only by a single central longitudinal ridge; in front the margin of the horse-shoe is marked by three small points" (_Dobson_). Fur light brown, then greyish, with light brown tips.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, 3 inches.
NO. 64. PHYLLORHINA ARMIGERA.
HABITAT.--The entire range of the Himalayas, Khasya Hills, and Ceylon.
[Figure: _Phyllorhina armigera_. Male. Female.]
DESCRIPTION.--The hinder erect nose-leaf narrow, not so broad as the horse-shoe; upper edge sinuate, slightly elevated in the centre, and at either extremity; vertical ridges beneath well developed, prominent, enclosing moderately deep cells; wart-like granular elevations on each side above the eyes are usually greatly developed, forming large thickened longitudinal elevations extending forward on each side of the posterior erect nose-leaf, and backwards towards the frontal sac (_Dobson_). The colour varies.
SIZE.--Length of head and body from 3 to 4 inches; tail about 2.
This is the largest of this genus, and one of the most interesting of the species. My space will not admit of extensive quotations from those who have written about it, but there is a fuller description of it in Dr. Dobson's book, and a very interesting account of its habits by Capt. J. Hutton, in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society,' 1872, page 701.
NO. 65. PHYLLORHINA LEPTOPHYLLA.
HABITAT.--Khasya Hills.
DESCRIPTION.--Ears large, broad, triangular, with subacute tips; outer margin slightly concave; upper transverse nose-leaf small; upper edge simple, narrower than horse-shoe, thin; three vertical folds in front faintly descernible at base only; horse-shoe with small incision in centre of front free edge; frontal pore small, placed at some distance behind the transverse nose-leaf; fur and integuments dark throughout.--_Dobson_.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, 2 inches; tail, 1-6/10.
NO. 66. PHYLLORHINA GALERITA.
HABITAT.--Central India, Deccan.
DESCRIPTION.--"Ear comparatively small, as broad as long; inner margin very convex forward; outer margin slightly concave beneath the tip; nose-leaf as in _P. larvata_, but the transverse terminal leaf is more rectangular; the superior margin less convex, and its concave front surface is marked by three very prominent vertical ridges; frontal pore small, indistinct, not larger than in the females of _P. larvata_."--_Dobson_.
SIZE.--Head and body about 2 inches; tail, 1 inch.
NO. 67. PHYLLORHINA BICOLOR.
HABITAT.--India (N. W. Himalaya), Nicobar Islands.
DESCRIPTION.--Fur above reddish chestnut; the base of the hairs pale reddish-white, or base of hair pure white, the tip, dark reddish-brown. Ears as long as the head, broad; the lower half of the inner margin very convex; the summit of the ear conch rounded off broadly as far as a point on the outer side, where a slight but distinct flattening occurs, and indicates the position of the tip. Horse-shoe small, square; the concave front surface divided into four cells by three distinct vertical ridges; no secondary leaflets external to the horse-shoe; frontal sac distinct in males, rudimentary in females (_Dobson_). Blyth includes this bat in his Burmese Catalogue, but does not say much about it.
GENUS COELOPS.
Possesses the general characteristics of _Rhinolophus_, but the tail and calcanea wanting entirely; the intercrural membrane acutely emarginate to the depth of a line even with the knees; ears large, broad and rounded; the summit of the facial membranes rising abruptly, obtusely bifid, bent forward; fur long, delicately fine.--_Jerdon_.
Dental formula: Inc., 1--1/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3.
NO. 68. COELOPS FRITHII. _Frith's Tailless Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 29_).
HABITAT.--The Sunderbunds, Bengal.
DESCRIPTION.--Colour dusky or blackish; the fur tipped with ashy brown above, paler and somewhat ashy beneath; membranes fuscous.
SIZE.--Length, 1-7/8 inch; membrane beyond 3/4 inch; forearm, 1-3/4.
This bat is rare. The above description, given by Jerdon, is based on one specimen sent to Mr. Blyth by Mr. Frith, who obtained it in the Sunderbunds. It also inhabits Java. Dr. Dobson examined a specimen from thence in the Leyden Museum. He says: "Calcanea and tail very short," whereas the above description says entirely wanting. "The ears are funnel-shaped, and thickly covered with fine hair. Metacarpal bone of thumb very long; the wing membrane enclosing the thumb up to the base of the claw; wing to the tarsus close to the ankles; feet very slender; toes with strong claws."
_GENUS RHINOPOMA_.
Ears moderate, but joined above, as in the Megaderms; the nostrils at the end of the muzzle, with a little lamina above, forming a kind of snout; tail slender and joined at the base with the intercrural membrane, but extending far beyond it.
Dental formula: Inc., 2/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 1--1/2--2; molars 3--3/3--3.
NO. 69. RHINOPOMA HARDWICKII. _Hardwick's Long-tailed Leaf Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 30_).
HABITAT.--All over India, Burmah and Malayana.
[Figure: Skull of _Rhinopoma_.]
DESCRIPTION.--Muzzle long, thick, truncated, and surrounded by a small leaf; tragus oblong, bi-acuminate; forehead concave with a channel down the centre; fur soft and very fine, dull brown throughout; face, rump, and part of abdominal region naked.--_Jerdon_.
SIZE.--Head and body, 2-6/10 inches; tail, 2-1/2; expanse, 13.
Frequents old ruins, caves, and clefts in rocks.
SUB-FAMILY NOCTILIONIDAE.
Bats without facial membranes; with short obtuse and bull-doggish heads; large lips.
_GENUS TAPHOZOUS_.
Have a small rounded indenture on the forehead; no raised lamina on the nostrils; the head pyramidal; eyes rather large; ears moderate in size and not joined at the base, but widely apart; the tip of the tail free above the membrane, which is much longer.
The males have a transverse cavity under the throat; wings long and narrow, collapsing with a double flexure outwards; fur soft and velvety. (Dobson includes this genus in his Family _Emballonuridae_.)
Dental formula: Inc., 1--1/4; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 2--2/2--2; molars, 3--3/3--3; premaxillaries cartilaginous, supporting only one pair of weak incisors with a gap between them.
NO. 70. TAPHOZOUS LONGIMANUS. _The Long-armed Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 31_).
HABITAT.--India generally.
DESCRIPTION.--"Ears oval, with many distinct folds, naked except at the base; tragus securiform; fur thick, close, fuscous-black; or dark fuscous-brown above; beneath paler, except on the throat, the hairs being conspicuously tipped with grey, the upper hairs being all white at their base; face nude, and the membrane dark brownish-black" (_Jerdon_). The gular sac, though represented in the male, is almost absent in the female, being but a rudimentary fold of skin; in this it differs from another common Indian species, _T. saccolaimus_, in which the gular sac is well developed in both sexes, though larger in the male.
SIZE.--Length, 5 inches; expanse, 15 to 16; tail, 1; fore-arm, 2-5/8; tibia, 1 inch.
This bat frequents old buildings, dark cellars, old ruins, &c.; the young are fulvescent, and become darker with age. Blyth states that it has a surprising faculty for creeping about on the vertical board of a cage, hitching its claws into the minute pores of the wood.
NO. 71. TAPHOZOUS MELANOPOGON. _The Black-bearded Bat_ (_Jerdon's No. 32_).
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Natural History of the Mammalia of India and CeylonChapter IV: Introduction (2)
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