Carollia perspicillata (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) in Different Brazilian Phytogeography Domains: A Multidisciplinary Approach

Abstract

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Short-tailed fruit bats are widely distributed throughout the Neotropical region, comprising eight species, three of which are found in Brazil: Carollia benkeithi, C. brevicaudum, and C. perspicillata, with C. perspicillata being the most abundant. Studies have raised concerns regarding C. perspicillata and C. brevicaudum due to morphological variability, conflicting diagnostic characteristics, and significant overlap, as well as low interspecific genetic divergence, especially considering their sympatric distribution across various habitats. To address these challenges in taxonomy, a multidisciplinary approach was used to assess the taxonomy of C. perspicillata across different Brazilian phytogeography domains. This approach integrated molecular and morphological data (including linear and geometric morphometrics of the skull). Our findings revealed an overlap in diagnostic characters, although slight morphological differentiation was observed in two specific traits among some specimens: the absence of maxilla curvature at the level of the 2nd premolar in lateral view and variations in coat bandage patterns. The cranial shape and size did not show difference between C. perspicillata and C. brevicaudum with a very low rate of correct classification based on canonical variate analysis (17.9% to 19.2%). Molecular analysis revealed a low genetic divergence of only 2.1%. The Maximum Likelihood (ML) tree displayed two well-supported clades. The ABGD, ASAP, mPTP and GMYC species delimitation models converged in the identification of a single Molecular Operational Taxonomy Unit (MOTU) with specimens that share genetic similarities formed by specimens of Carollia from Brazil (present study), with C. perspicillata from Panama, Ecuador, and French Guiana (GenBank). Across all models, there was no clustering of Carollia species from Brazil (current study) with C. brevicaudum (GenBank). Therefore, the congruence between morphological and molecular findings provides strong evidence for considering a single taxonomy entity in diverse Brazilian phytogeography domains: C. perspicillata.