Fossil bats from the Quaternary of Serra da Capivara, northeast Brazil

Abstract

The Serra da Capivara National Park, in the southeast of State of Piauí, is widely recognized for its important archeological sites. However, in the areas surrounding the park there are also paleontological sites, especially limestone caves, where fossils of small mammals have been found. This material was recovered from deposits attributed to the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene. Previous works have listed the occurrence of eight species of bats in two caves, Toca do Gordo do Garrincho and Toca da Janela da Barra do Antonião. The present study reports new data on the Chiroptera from Serra da Capivara, based on cranio-mandibular fragments from three caves. From Toca do Barrigudo we identified Tonatia sp., Phyllostomus discolor and Artibeus planirostris. The latter two species have also been identified from Toca do Serrote do Artur, in addition to Lophostoma sp. and Eptesicus fuscus. From Toca do Gordo do Garrincho, the record of Desmodus rotundus is confirmed, along with the identification of Lophostoma sp. Thus, the following taxa are recorded for the first time for the Quaternary of the Serra da Capivara region: Lophostoma sp., Phyllostomus discolor and Eptesicus fuscus. All taxa currently occur in the area, except Eptesicus fuscus, which has previously been recorded for the Quaternary of Brazil, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Bahia, suggesting a much wider geographical distribution at least until the beginning of the Holocene, which is corroborated by the Serra da Capivara findings.