The Zoochat Photographic Guide to Bats

Subfamily PTEROPODINAE
Flying Foxes

About 80 species in eight genera: Acerodon, Desmalopex, Eidolon, Mirimiri, Neopteryx, Pteralopex, Pteropus, Styloctenium

There are twenty-four species in the Zoochat galleries, representing three genera: Acerodon, Eidolon, Pteropus.

 

Acerodon
Five species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Sulawesi Fruit Bat Acerodon celebensis
Monotypic


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Indonesia


Sulawesi fruit bat (Acerodon celebensis) | ZooChat


There are four other species in this genus:

Talaud Fruit Bat Acerodon humilis
Giant Golden-crowned Fruit Bat Acerodon jubatus
Palawan Fruit Bat Acerodon leucotis
Sunda Fruit Bat Acerodon mackloti

 

Eidolon
Two species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


African Straw-coloured Fruit Bat Eidolon helvum
Three subspecies: annobonensis, helvum, sabaeum


Photo by @Michal Sloviak at Zoo Plzen, Czech Republic


Straw-coloured fruit bat (Eidolon helvum) | ZooChat


The second species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries, is the Madagascan Fruit Bat Eidolon dupreanum.

 

Pteropus
About sixty species, twenty-two of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Black Flying Fox Pteropus alecto
Four subspecies: alecto, aterrimus, gouldi, morio


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Indonesia (subspecies alecto)


Black Flying Foxes (Pteropus alecto alecto) - ZooChat


Photo by @AWP at Territory Wildlife Park, Australia (Australian subspecies gouldi)


Black Flying-Foxes | ZooChat


Vanuatu Flying Fox Pteropus anetianus
Seven subspecies: anetianus, aorensis, bakeri, banksiana, eotinus, motalavae, pastoris


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Vanuatu (subspecies aorensis)


https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/vanuatu-flying-fox-pteropus-anetianus-aorensis.685929/


Spectacled Flying Fox Pteropus conspicillatus
Two subspecies: chrysauchen, conspicillatus


Photo by @tdierikx at Featherdale Wildlife Park, Australia (Australian subspecies conspicillatus)


Spectacled Flying Fox - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Australia (Australian subspecies conspicillatus), showing the variability of the facial markings in comparison to the previous photo


Spectacled Flying Fox, Cairns - ZooChat


Ryukyu Flying Fox Pteropus dasymallus
Five subspecies: daitoensis, dasymallus, formosus, inopinatus, yayeyamae


Photo by @Sicarius at Okinawa Zoo, Japan (subspecies daitoensis)


Daito fruit bat (Pteropus dasymallus daitoensis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Sicarius at Hirakawa Zoo, Japan (subspecies dasymallus)


https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/erabu-fruit-bat-pteropus-dasymallus-dasymallus.670999/


Photo by @amur leopard at Ueno Zoo, Japan (subspecies inopinatus)


https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/ryukyu-flying-fox-pteropus-dasymallus-inopinatus.674853/


Indian Flying Fox Pteropus giganteus
Three subspecies: ariel, giganteus, leucocephalus

Taxonomic note: named as Pteropus medius in some online sources. A 2012 paper [https://www.ceson.org/vespertilio/16/203_204_Mlikovsky.pdf] made the proposal that P. giganteus is a synonym of P. vampyrus and therefore the next available name for this species is P. medius. Various scientific papers on the species' biology etc have used the name P. medius but no legitimate taxonomic sources have taken it up, and as far as I can tell the ICZN has made no ruling on it.


Photo by @chrisroughley in the wild, Sri Lanka (subspecies giganteus)


Flying fox - ZooChat


Variable (or Island or Small) Flying Fox Pteropus hypomelanus
Sixteen subspecies: annectens, cagayanus, canus, condorensis, enganus, fretensis, geminorum, lepidus, hypomelanus, luteus, macassaricus, maris, robinsoni, satyrus, simalurus, tomesi


Photo by @TeaLovingDave at Zoo Leipzig, Germany (subspecies condorensis)


Vietnamese Small Flying Fox (Pteropus hypomelanus condorensis) at at Zoo Le | ZooChat


Livingstone's (Comoros) Flying Fox Pteropus livingstonii
Monotypic


Photo by @Maguari at Bristol Zoo, UK


Livingstone's Fruit Bat at Bristol 19/12/09 | ZooChat


Lyle's Flying Fox Pteropus lylei
Monotypic


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Thailand


Lyle's Fruit Bat (Pteropus lylei), female and youngster | ZooChat


Large-eared or Big-eared Flying Fox Pteropus macrotis
Two subspecies: epularius and macrotis


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Saibai Island (Australia) (subspecies epularius)


Big-=eared Fruit Bats - ZooChat


Mariana Flying Fox Pteropus mariannus
Probably monotypic, but up to seven subspecies have been named. The three subspecies most commonly used are mariannus, paganensis and ulthiensis.


Photo by @Najade at Guam Zoo, Guam (if subspecies are recognised, then the bats at the Guam Zoo are the nominate mariannus)


Mariana Fruit Bat (Pteropus mariannus) | ZooChat


Christmas Island Flying Fox Pteropus natalis
Monotypic (often treated as a subspecies of P. melanotus but it is well-separated in range, and insular species of Pteropus is the norm)


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Christmas Island (Australia)


Christmas Island Fruit Bat in a mango tree | ZooChat


Mauritius Flying Fox Pteropus niger
Monotypic


Photo by @carl the birder in the wild, Mauritius


mauritus flying fox - ZooChat

 

Ornate Flying Fox Pteropus ornatus
Two subspecies: auratus, ornatus


Photo by @Chlidonias at the Noumea Zoo, New Caledonia (unknown subspecies)


ornate flying foxes (Pteropus ornatus) | ZooChat


Grey-headed Flying Fox Pteropus poliocephalus
Monotypic


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 in the wild, Australia


https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/grey-headed-flying-fox.685656/


Little Golden-mantled Flying Fox Pteropus pumilus
Monotypic


Photo by @Giant Eland at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo, USA


little golden-mantled flying fox (Pteropus pumilus) | ZooChat


Madagascan Flying Fox Pteropus rufus
Monotypic. The subspecies princeps from southeastern Madagascar has been separated in the past but the genetics do not support this.


Photo by @lintworm at Zoo Wroclaw, Poland [note: although the appearance of these bats does not appear to match those in online photos of wild P. rufus, they were imported direct from Madagascar and so presumably are indeed this species]


Madagascar Flying Fox - ZooChat


Rodrigues Flying Fox Pteropus rodricensis
Monotypic


Photo by @Tomek at Drusillas Zoo Park, UK


Rodrigues Flying Fox (Pteropus rodricensis), May 2018 | ZooChat


Samoan Flying Fox Pteropus samoensis
Two subspecies: nawaiensis, samoensis


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Samoa (subspecies samoensis)


Samoan flying fox (Pteropus samoensis) | ZooChat


Little Red Flying Fox Pteropus scapulatus
Monotypic


Photo by @Orycteropus at the Rare Species Conservation Centre, UK


Little Red Flying Fox, Rare Species Conservation Centre, Sandwich | ZooChat


Pacific (or Insular or Tongan) Flying Fox Pteropus tonganus
Three subspecies: basiliscus, geddiei, tonganus


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Vanuatu (subspecies geddiei)


https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/pacific-flying-foxes-pteropus-tonganus-geddiei.685928/


Photo by @Semioptera at Kula Eco-Park, Fiji (subspecies tonganus)


Insular Flying-fox | ZooChat


Large Flying Fox Pteropus vampyrus
Six subspecies: edulis, lanensis, natunae, pluton, sumatrensis, vampyrus. A seventh subspecies, malaccensis of mainland southeast Asia, is now generally combined with sumatrensis.


Photo by @Maguari at Lubee Bat Conservancy, USA (unknown subspecies - the LBC has/had wild-caught animals from both Java (vampyrus) and Sumatra (sumatrensis))


Large Flying Foxes at Lubee Bat Conservancy, 11/10/13 - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Sabah (Bornean subspecies natunae)


Large Flying Fox - Kinabatangan - ZooChat


Pemba Flying Fox Pteropus voeltzkowi
Monotypic


Photo by @Ituri at Phoenix Zoo, USA


Pemba Flying Fox - 2006 | ZooChat

 

Pteropus continued


There are about forty other extant species in this genus which are not represented in the Zoochat galleries:


Admiralty Flying Fox Pteropus admiralitatum (noted by the IUCN as probably incorporating three separate species)

Aldabra Flying Fox Pteropus aldabrensis

Silvery or Ambon Flying Fox Pteropus argentatus (known from a single specimen from Ambon, treated as synonymous with the Moluccan Flying Fox Pteropus chrysoproctus by the IUCN - if it is a distinct species it is likely now extinct)

Aru Flying Fox Pteropus aruensis

Ashy-headed or North Moluccan Flying Fox Pteropus caniceps

Bismark Masked Flying Fox Pteropus capistratus

Moluccan Flying Fox Pteropus chrysoproctus

Makira Flying Fox Pteropus cognatus

Nicobar Flying Fox Pteropus faunulus

Banks Flying Fox Pteropus fundatus

Gilliard's Flying Fox Pteropus gilliardorum (known from only three specimens)

Grey Flying Fox Pteropus griseus

Ontong Java Flying Fox Pteropus howensis (may be conspecific with the Admiralty Flying Fox Pteropus admiralitatum; not collected since 1945, although this is probably due to the remote locality)

Andersen's Flying Fox Pteropus intermedius (IUCN notes that this will probably be shown to be conspecific with the Indian Flying Fox Pteropus giganteus, although geographically this seems suspect; last recorded in 1970)

Kei Flying Fox Pteropus keyensis

Lombok Flying Fox Pteropus lombocensis

Okinawa Flying Fox Pteropus loochoensis

Sanborn's or Lesser Flying Fox Pteropus mahaganus

Black-bearded Flying Fox Pteropus melanopogon

Black-eared Flying Fox Pteropus melanotis

Carolines or Pohnpei Flying Fox Pteropus molossinus

Bismarck or Great Flying Fox Pteropus neohibernicus

Temotu Flying Fox Pteropus nitendiensis

Ceram Flying Fox Pteropus ocularis

Chuuk Flying Fox Pteropus pelagicus (includes the Chuuk Flying Fox P. insularis and the Mortlock Flying Fox P. phaeocephalus, formerly treated as separate species; the name pelagicus has precedence over phaeocephalus)

Palau Flying Fox Pteropus pelewensis

Moluccan Masked Flying Fox Pteropus personatus

Geelvink Bay Flying Fox Pteropus pohlei (the IUCN notes that P. pohlei also includes a separate undescribed species)

Bonin Flying Fox Pteropus pselaphon

Solomons Flying Fox Pteropus rayneri

Rennell Flying Fox Pteropus rennelli

Seychelles Flying Fox Pteropus seychellensis

Philippine Grey Flying Fox Pteropus speciosus

Temminck's Flying Fox Pteropus temminckii

Vanikoro Flying Fox Pteropus tuberculatus

Kosrae Flying Fox Pteropus ualanus

New Caledonia Flying Fox Pteropus vetulus

Dwarf Flying Fox Pteropus woodfordi

Yap Flying Fox Pteropus yapensis



There are also these additional species which have become extinct within historical times:


Small Samoan Flying Fox Pteropus allenorum (one specimen, collected in 1856)

Dusky or Percy Islands Flying Fox Pteropus brunneus (one specimen, collected in 1874)

Large Samoan Flying Fox Pteropus coxi (one specimen, collected in c.1840)

Large Palau Flying Fox Pteropus pilosus (two specimens, collected before 1874)

Small Mauritian Flying Fox Pteropus subniger (formerly common, extinct c.1860s-1870s)

Guam Flying Fox Pteropus tokudae (three specimens, the last collected in 1968)

 

None of the remaining genera in the subfamily Pteropodinae are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Desmalopex
Two species

Taxonomic note: the species in this genus were formerly included in Pteropus.

White-winged Flying Fox Desmalopex leucopterus
Small White-winged Flying Fox Desmalopex microleucopterus


Mirimiri
One species

Fijian Monkey-faced Bat Mirimiri acrodonta


Neopteryx
One species

Small-toothed Fruit Bat Neopteryx frosti


Pteralopex
Five species

Bougainville Monkey-faced Bat Pteralopex anceps
Guadalcanal Monkey-faced Bat Pteralopex atrata
Greater Monkey-faced Bat Pteralopex flanneryi
Montane Monkey-faced Bat Pteralopex pulchra
New Georgian Monkey-faced Bat Pteralopex taki


Styloctenium
Two species

Mindoro Stripe-faced Fruit Bat Styloctenium mindorensis
Sulawesi Stripe-faced Fruit Bat Styloctenium wallacei

 

Subfamily ROUSETTINAE
Rousette Bats

About twelve species in two or three genera: Eonycteris, Rousettus, Stenonycteris

There are four species in the Zoochat galleries, representing all three genera.

 

Eonycteris
Three species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Cave-dwelling Nectar Bat Eonycteris spelaea
Four subspecies: glandifera, rosenbergii, spelaea, winnyae


Photo by @ronnienl in the wild, Singapore (subspecies spelaea)


Cave Nectar Bat - ZooChat



The other two species in the genus are:

Greater Nectar Bat Eonycteris major

Philippine Dawn Bat Eonycteris robusta

 

Rousettus
About seven species, two of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.

The genus has been divided into three subgenera - Rousettus, Stenonycteris and Boneia - of which the latter has proven to actually be closely related to Harpyionycteris bats despite its outward similarity to Rousettus bats (and hence in this thread I have placed it under the subfamily Harpyionycterinae). The other subgenus Stenonycteris is probably also distinct (and possibly not closely related to Rousettus either), so I have elevated it here to a full genus.


Egyptian Rousette Bat or Egyptian Fruit Bat Rousettus aegyptiacus
Six subspecies: aegyptiacus, arabicus, leachii, princeps, tomensis, unicolor
Zoo populations do not appear to be identified to subspecies, and there do not seem to be any photos of wild animals in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @alexkant at Abu Kabir University Zoo, Israel


Egyptian fruit bat/ Rousettus aegyptiacus | ZooChat


Photo by @Elephas Maximus at Ekaterinburg Zoo, Russia


Egyptian fruit bat | ZooChat


Leschenault's Rousette Bat Rousettus leschenaultii
Three subspecies: leschenaultii, seminudus, shortridgei


Photo by @Giant Eland at Ueno Zoo, Japan


Leschenault's rousette (Rousettus leschenaultii) | ZooChat


There are five other species in this genus:

Geoffroy's Rousette Bat Rousettus amplexicaudatus
Sulawesi Rousette Bat Rousettus celebensis
Linduan Rousette Bat Rousettus linduensis
Comoro Rousette Bat Rousettus obliviosus
Bare-backed Rousette Bat Rousettus spinalatus

 

Stenonycteris
Two species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Long-haired Rousette Bat Stenonycteris lanosus
Probably monotypic, although two subspecies have been named (kempi and lanosus).


Photo by @Giant Eland at Franklin Park Zoo, USA


Ruwenzori Long-Haired Fruit Bat (Rousettus lanosus) - ZooChat



The second species, not represented here, is the Madagascan Rousette Bat Stenonycteris madagascariensis, which has in the past been treated as a subspecies of the previous species.

 

Subfamily EPOMOPHORINAE
African Fruit Bats

About 25 species in 11 genera: Casinycteris, Eomops, Epomophorus, Hypsignathus, Lissonycteris, Macroglossus, Micropteropus, Myonycteris, Nanonycteris, Plerotes, Scotonycteris

There are only five species in the Zoochat galleries, representing four genera: Epomophorus, Hypsignathus, Lissonycteris, Micropteropus.

 

Epomophorus
Nine species, of which only two are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Peters's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus crypturus
Monotypic


Photo by @Newzooboy in the wild, South Africa


Kruger National Psrk | ZooChat


Gambian Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus gambianus
Two subspecies: gambianus, pousarguesi


Photo by @Maguari at Zoo Plzen, Czech Republic


Wahlberg's Epauletted Bat at Plzen, 25/05/10 | ZooChat


There are seven other species in this genus:

Angolan Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus angolensis
Ansell's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus anselli
Lesser Angolan Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus grandis
Ethiopian Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus labiatus
East African Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus minimus
Minor Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus minor
Wahlberg's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus wahlbergi

 

Hypsignathus
One species


Hammer-headed Bat Hypsignathus monstrosus
Monotypic


Photo by @MagpieGoose at Cotswold Wildlife Park, UK


Hammer-headed Bat (2) | ZooChat

 

Lissonycteris
Only one species is usually recognised (with multiple subspecies), but it is probably a species complex.


Angolan Fruit Bat Lissonycteris angolensis
Five subspecies: angolensis, goliath, petraea, ruwenzorii, smithii


Photo by @lintworm in the wild, Tanzania (subspecies ruwenzorii)


Angolan fruit bat | ZooChat


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Micropteropus
Two species


Peters's Dwarf Epauletted Fruit Bat Micropteropus pusillus
Monotypic


Photo by @vogelcommando in a private collection


Peters's dwarf epauletted fruit bat - Micropteropus pusillus - ZooChat



The second species in the genus is the Hayman's Dwarf Epauletted Fruit Bat Micropteropus intermedius

 

None of the remaining genera in the subfamily Epomophorinae are represented in the Zoochat galleries.



Casinycteris
One species

Short-palated Fruit Bat Casinycteris argynnis


Epomops
Three species

Buettikofer's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomops buettikoferi
Dobson's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomops dobsoni
Franquet's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomops franqueti


Megaloglossus
One species

Woermann's Bat Megaloglossus woermanni


Myonycteris
Three species

São Tomé Collared Fruit Bat Myonycteris brachycephala
East African Little Collared Fruit Bat Myonycteris relicta
Little Collared Fruit Bat Myonycteris torquata


Nanonycteris
One species

Veldkamp's Dwarf Epauletted Fruit Bat Nanonycteris veldkampii


Plerotes
One species

D'Anchieta's Fruit Bat Plerotes anchietae


Scotonycteris
Two species

Zenker's Fruit Bat Scotonycteris zenkeri
Pohle's Fruit Bat Scotonycteris ophiodon

 

I appreciate that immensely. When I get to the microchiropterans there will be a lot of lists of unaccompanied names!

And I've realised I need to see more Pteropus!

 

Family MEGADERMATIDAE
False Vampire Bats

Six species in five genera: Cardioderma, Eudiscoderma, Lavia, Macroderma, Megaderma

There are five species from four genera represented in the Zoochat galleries. The only species missing is the Thongaree’s Disc-nosed Bat Eudiscoderma thongareeae which is unlikely to have a photo added here due to its rarity (it was only described in 2015, and is known from only three specimens from the Bala Forest in southern peninsular Thailand).

Because there are so few species in the Family I have included them all in one post.


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Cardioderma
One species


Heart-nosed Bat Cardioderma cor
Monotypic


Photo by @lintworm in the wild, Kenya


Heart-faced bats | ZooChat


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Lavia
One species


Yellow-winged Bat Lavia frons
Possibly monotypic, although three subspecies have been named: affinis, frons, rex (described as being "of very dubious validity" in Kingdon's Mammals of Africa)


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Uganda


Yellow-winged Bat | ZooChat


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Macroderma
One species


Ghost Bat Macroderma gigas
Monotypic


Photo by @Hix at Taronga Zoo, Australia


Ghost Bat - ZooChat


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Megaderma
Two species


Greater False Vampire Bat Megaderma lyra
Two subspecies: lyra, sinensis


Photo by @Sun Wukong


Megaderma lyra | ZooChat


Lesser False Vampire Bat Megaderma spasma
Seventeen subspecies: abditum, carimatae, celebensis, ceylonense, horsfieldii, kinabalu, lasiae, majus, medium, minus, naisense, natunae, pangandarana, philippinensis, siumatis, spasma, trifolium


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Sri Lanka (subspecies ceylonense)


Lesser False Vampires (Megaderma spasma ceylonense) | ZooChat


Photo by @ronnienl in the wild, Thailand (subspecies minus)


Lesser False Vampire Bats - ZooChat

 

Family RHINOPOMATIDAE
Mouse-tailed Bats

Six species in one genus: Rhinopoma


One of the species is represented in the Zoochat galleries.



Greater Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma microphyllum
Four to six subspecies: asirensis, harrisoni, kinneari, microphyllum, sumatrae, tropicalis


Photo by @Giant Eland at Meir Segals Garden University Zoo, Israel (probably the local subspecies microphyllum)


greater mouse-tailed bat (Rhinopoma microphyllum) - ZooChat


The other species in the family are as follows:

Egyptian Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma cystops
Yemeni Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma hadramauticum
Lesser Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma hardwickii
Macinnes's Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma macinnesi
Small Mouse-tailed Bat Rhinopoma muscatellum