Nycteris Research Articles

Mesostigmata mites (Acari: Parasitiformes) associated with birds and their nests from Egypt

A survey of gamasid mites (Arachnida: Acari: Mesostigmata) associated with domestic and wild birds in Egypt was conducted. In total, 16 species within 10 families were collected from 22 bird species. The most abundant species belonged to the genera Dermanyssus Duges (Dermanyssidae), Ornithonyssus Sambon, and Steatonyssus Kolenati (both Macronyssidae). Among various birds examined, the distribution and occurrence of mites were recorded. Taxonomic remarks about the morphology of the collected mites are presented to facilitate species discrimination for non-acarologists. Steatonyssus longipes Radovsky & Yunker, 1963, previously described as a new species from the Egyptian slit-faced bat, Nycteris thebaica Geoffroy (Chiroptera), is first recorded from various bird hosts in Egypt. Among the examined birds, chickens, Gallus gallus domesticus (Linnaeus) (Galliformes); palm doves, Streoptopelia senigalensis aegyptiacus (Linnaeus); domestic pigeons, Columba livia domestica Gmelin (both Columbiformes); and house sparrows, Passer domesticus niloticus, were the highly mite-infested birds. Commonly, mites were observed under the wings, around the vent region, in the breast area, and around the head and neck. The present study showed that Egyptian birds harbor various species of ectoparasitic mites, with chickens having more diversity, and macronyssid and dermanyssid mites are the most abundant.

Spatiotemporal expression patterns of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) and its receptor CD74 in mink placenta

Bats are a highly successful, widely distributed group, with considerable variation in placental structure. The Egyptian slit-faced bat Nycteris thebaica is a member of one of the few families with previously undescribed placentation. It was found that, although the interhemal type of the Nycteris placenta is endotheliochorial with a single layer of cytotrophoblast, the arborizing pattern of the maternal vessels and especially the extraordinary major placental artery differs from the placenta of the emballonurid bats to which this family is considered to be most closely related. The major placental artery providing maternal blood to the vessels of the placental disk has a highly glycosylated matrix surrounded by two-layered folds of trophoblast, forming an apparently rigid structure of unique morphology. The yolk sac is collapsed, with hypertrophied endodermal and mesothelial cells similar to many other bat species. The paraplacenta is extensive with abundant fetal vessels underlying cytotrophoblast and syncytial trophoblast layers, fronting on an endometrium that largely lacks uterine epithelial cells but has large decidual cells and is poorly vascularized. The placenta of Nycteris lacks a hemophagous region, unlike the emballonurid bats Taphozous and Saccopteryx. Although the latter two species have similar placentas, the placental structure of Nycteris does little to relate it to the other family within the Emballonuroidea. Shared and divergent reproductive characters are discussed in relationship to bat phylogenetic relationships.

A numerical study of the role of the noseleaf in the Egyptian slit-faced bat

Around 300 bat species are known to emit their ultrasonic biosonar pulses through the nostrils. This nasal emission coincides with the presence of intricately shaped baffle structures surrounding the nostrils. Some prior experimental evidence indicates that these “noseleaves” have an effect on the shape of the animals' radiation patterns. Here, a numerical acoustical analysis of the noseleaf of a slit-faced bat species is presented to show that all three distinctive parts of its noseleaf (“pit”, “upper leaf”, “lower leaf”) have an effect on the acoustic near field as well as on the directivity pattern. In their effects on the near field, the noseleaf parts showed a tendency toward spatial partitioning with the effects due to each part dominating a certain region. However, interactions between the acoustic effects of the parts were also evident, most notably, a synergism between the frequency-dependent effects of two parts of the noseleaf (“pit”, “lower leaf”) to produce an even stronger frequency selectiv...

Hantavirus in Bat, Sierra Leone

To the Editor: Hantaviruses (family Bunyaviridae) are transmitted from rodent reservoirs to humans. These viruses cause life-threatening human diseases: hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome in the Americas and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in Asia and Europe (1). Since 2006, indigenous hantaviruses were reported also from Africa. Sangassou virus was found in an African wood mouse (Hylomyscus simus) in Guinea (2). Discovery of newer African hantaviruses, Tanganya virus and recently Azagny virus, was even more surprising because they were found in shrews (3,4). The detection of hantaviruses in small mammals other than rodents, such as shrews and also moles (4), increasingly raises questions regarding the real hantavirus host range. Bats (order Chiroptera) are already known to harbor a broad variety of emerging pathogens, including other bunyaviruses (5). Their ability to fly and social life history enable efficient pathogen maintenance, evolution, and spread. Therefore, we conducted a study on hantaviruses in bats from Africa. A total of 525 tissue samples from 417 bats representing 28 genera were tested for the presence of hantavirus RNA. Samples originated from different regions in western and central Africa and were collected during 2009 and early 2011. Total RNA was extracted from tissue samples and reverse transcribed. cDNA was screened by PCR specific for sequences of the large genomic segment across the genus Hantavirus (2). One sample yielded a product of the expected size and was subjected to cloning and sequencing. The positive sample (MGB/1209) was obtained from 1 of 18 investigated slit-faced bats (family Nycteridae). The animal was trapped at the Magboi River within Gola National Park, Sierra Leone (7°50.194′N, 10°38.626′W), and the identification as Nycteris hispida has been verified with the voucher specimen (RCJF529). Histologic examination of organs of the animal showed no obvious pathologic findings. The obtained 414-nt sequence covers a genomic region, which was found to correspond to nt position 2,918–3,332 in the large segment open reading frame of prototypic Hantaan virus. Bioinformatic analysis on the amino acid level showed highest degrees of identity to shrew- and mole-associated hantaviruses (Thottapalayam virus 73.0%, Altai virus 69.7%, Nova and Imjin virus 69.3%). On the basis of tree topology of a maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree, the sequence does not cluster with rodent-associated hantaviruses but groups with those found in shrews and moles (Figure). Figure Maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree of MGB/1209 virus based on partial large segment sequence (414 nt) and showing the phylogenetic placement of the novel sequence from Nycteris spp. bat compared with hantaviruses associated (i) with shrews and moles: ... Considering that bats are more closely related to shrews and moles than to rodents (6), a certain genetic similarity of a putative bat-borne hantavirus with shrew- and mole-associated hantaviruses seems reasonable. Notably, shrew-associated Thottapalayam virus (India) and Imjin virus (South Korea) seem to be closer relatives, and African Tanganya virus (Guinea) and Azagny virus (Cote d’Ivoire) are more distantly related. Additional sequence data is needed for more conclusive phylogenetic analyses. Because the new amino acid sequence is at least 22% divergent from those of other hantaviruses, we conclude that the bat was infected with a newly found hantavirus. We propose the putative name Magboi virus (MGBV) for the new virus because it was detected in an animal captured at the Magboi River in Sierra Leone. The MGBV nucleotide sequence is novel and has not been known or handled before in our laboratory. Before this study, hantavirus nucleic acid was found in lung and kidney tissues of bats from the genera Eptesicus and Rhinolophus in South Korea. However, nucleotide sequencing showed the presence of prototypical Hantaan virus indicating a spillover infection or laboratory contamination (7). Further screening is necessary to confirm N. hispida as a natural reservoir host of the virus. Although the presented bat-associated sequence is obviously distinct from other hantaviruses, which suggests association with a novel natural host, a spillover infection from another, yet unrecognized host cannot be ruled out. However, detection of the virus exclusively in 1 organ (lung but not in liver, kidney, and spleen; data not shown) suggests a persistent infection that is typically observed in natural hosts of hantaviruses (8). To date, only a few reports exist on cases of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in Africa (9,10). However, underreporting must be assumed because the symptoms resemble those of many other febrile infections. Moreover, in cases of infections by non–rodent-associated hantaviruses, cross-reactivity with routinely used rodent-borne virus antigens should be limited and may hamper human serodiagnostics (1). The results suggest that bats, which are hosts of many emerging pathogens (5), may act as natural reservoirs for hantavirus. The effect of this virus on public health remains to be determined.

Placentation in the Egyptian Slit-faced Bat Nycteris thebaica (Chiroptera: Nycteridae)

Bats are a highly successful, widely distributed group, with considerable variation in placental structure. The Egyptian slit-faced bat Nycteris thebaica is a member of one of the few families with previously undescribed placentation. It was found that, although the interhemal type of the Nycteris placenta is endotheliochorial with a single layer of cytotrophoblast, the arborizing pattern of the maternal vessels and especially the extraordinary major placental artery differs from the placenta of the emballonurid bats to which this family is considered to be most closely related. The major placental artery providing maternal blood to the vessels of the placental disk has a highly glycosylated matrix surrounded by two-layered folds of trophoblast, forming an apparently rigid structure of unique morphology. The yolk sac is collapsed, with hypertrophied endodermal and mesothelial cells similar to many other bat species. The paraplacenta is extensive with abundant fetal vessels underlying cytotrophoblast and syncytial trophoblast layers, fronting on an endometrium that largely lacks uterine epithelial cells but has large decidual cells and is poorly vascularized. The placenta of Nycteris lacks a hemophagous region, unlike the emballonurid bats Taphozous and Saccopteryx. Although the latter two species have similar placentas, the placental structure of Nycteris does little to relate it to the other family within the Emballonuroidea. Shared and divergent reproductive characters are discussed in relationship to bat phylogenetic relationships.

Abundance, habitat preference and distribution of small mammals in Dinder National Park, Sudan

Abundance, habitat preference and distribution of small mammals in Dinder National Park, Sudan

The immature stages of Katacamilla cavernicola Papp, the first described for the Camillidae (Diptera: Schizophora), with comparison to other known Ephydroidea larvae, and notes on biology

Katacamilla cavernicola Papp, collected from caves at four localities in northern and central Namibia, is here shown to exhibit both parietal and troglophilic habitat preferences, and the larval stage is trophically guanobious. Katacamilla cavernicola was reared in the laboratory from the guano of the rock pigeon Columba guinea L. (parietal), and of the common slit-faced bat Nycteris thebaica Geoffrey (troglophilic) and larvae and puparia were obtained. The duration of the larval stage of K. cavernicola was found to be 7 days and the pupal stage 6-7 days, eggs remaining dormant within guano, and larval development being apparently triggered by periodic moistening, either by urine, or other liquids. Descriptions of the third instar larva and puparium are presented and are illustrated with line drawings and stereoscan micrographs. These descriptions of the immature stages are the first known for the Camillidae. Larval features are compared to the three closely related families in the Ephydroidea, for which the immature stages are known: Drosophilidae, Curtonotidae and Ephydridae. The larval morphology of Katacamilla is found to be generally close to the putative groundplan for the Ephydroidea. However, the basal sclerite has very large open windows with the ventral arm of the dorsal cornu being very long and needle-like. The thoracic segments are very long and slender and unusually well-separated from one another, and the abdominal segments and the prothoracic Keilin organs are very close together, a trait that is within the Ephydroidea currently only known in the Ephydridae.

First record of the Egyptian Slit-faced Bat, Nycteris thebaica, from Jordan

The Egyptian Slit-faced Bat, Nycteris thebaica, was recorded for the first time from Jordan in 1999, in a barren mountainous area overlooking the Dead Sea.

Resource use by two morphologically similar insectivorous bats (Nycteris thebaicaandHipposideros caffer)

Studies of morphologically dissimilar insectivorous bats have lead to the conclusion that morphology is the prime correlate of habitat use, and consequently of diet. This has lead to the prediction that morphologically similar bats should have similar diets. We examined the diet and morphology of two morphologically similar species, the slit-faced bat, Nycteris thebaica, and Sundevall's leaf-nosed bat, Hipposideros caffer, in the context of this prediction. Although both species foraged in the same habitat, they had distinctly different diets. The diet of N. thebaica consisted mainly of non-volant prey, primarily orthopterans and arachnids, and the diet of H. caffer, mainly of moths. Differences in wing design between the two taxa were small. The only significant difference was in aspect ratio. There were no differences in wing loading and wingtip shape ratio between the two species. The flying abilities reported for these two species are very similar, suggesting that these small differences in wing design do not translate into differences in flying ability, and cannot explain the dietary differences between these two species. On the other hand, there are marked differences in their prey detection systems which correspond to differences in their diets. H. caffer uses echolocation to detect the flapping wings of insect prey, whereas N. thebaica depends on prey-generated sounds (fluttering or scuffling) to locate its targets.

Taxonomic Status of Nycteris vinsoni Dalquest (Chiroptera, Nycteridae)

The type of Nycteris vinsoni has been reexamined and the tragus partially reconstituted. It is now evident that the tragus is semilunate rather than pyriform in structure. This character causes N. vinsoni to be transferred from the thebaica group, where I had previously put it, to the macrotis group. I would therefore regard it as a subspecies of Nycteris macrotis .

Foraging Behavior and Prey Selection by Large Slit-Faced Bats (Nycteris grandis; Chiroptera: Nycteridae)

Analysis of prey remains from beneath feeding perches in Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe between 1 March 1987 and 30 April 1988, showed that Nycteris grandis fed mainly on frogs, bats, and arthropods, and occasionally took birds and fish. There was marked seasonal variation in the prey taken, with bats and frogs dominating the biomass at different times. In November 1987, all-night radio-tracking over 15 bat nights revealed significant differences in habitat use between individuals, with one bat foraging along and over the Zambezi River, and another foraging in Acacia albida woodland and over the river. The bats alternated between foraging from continuous flight and making short flights from perches, although foraging over the river usually entailed continuous flight. Significant differences in the use of these foraging strategies between 1987 and an earlier study coincided with differences in November rainfall, and a drastic reduction in the amount of food the bats consumed daily. THE PREY TAKEN BY A PREDATOR may reflect some combination of prey availability and the predator's behavior such as its foraging strategy, pattern of habitat use, and dietary preference. Prevailing local conditions may predude separating these components, but for a variety of reasons, exploring them can be done by the study of some animal-eating bats. First, variation in diet is a recurring pattern among Microchiroptera (e.g., Norberg & Fenton 1988); second, diet may be influenced by the habitat where individuals forage (Herd & Fenton 1983, Swift & Racey 1983); and third, some species use different foraging strategies (e.g., Fenton 1988). There are conflicting opinions about prey specializations shown by insectivorous bats because some have been called specialists on particular groups of prey (e.g., moth strategists -Black 1972), while others are opportunistic in their foraging (Fenton & Morris 1976, Gould 1978, Vaughan 1980, Bell 1980). There is evidence that foraging bats may select only some of the available prey (e.g., Buchler 1976, Brigham 1988), but it may be impossible to distinguish selectivity based on prey taxon from that associated with prey size. For example, Hickey (1988) found that Lasiurus borealis fed almost exclusively on large moths, the only large insects available most of the time. Nycteris grandis is widespread in Africa, with most of its distribution overlapping with areas of rain forest (Smithers 1983). It is large (35 g) and in savannah areas consumes a variety of prey from vertebrates to arthropods (Fenton et a/. 1981) and alternates between two foraging strategies; namely, hunting from continuous flight or from a perch (Fenton et al. 1987). Because flying bats consume energy at about 2 5 times their basal metabolic rates (Thomas 1987), these two foraging strategies should differ dramatically in their costs to the bats. Nycteris grandis use relatively small foraging areas and return to preferred perches to consume captured prey from which they discard some pieces-a set of traits that makes them well suited for studies designed to relate foraging strategy to prey selection, prey availability, and habitat use. The purpose of this study was to examine the prey taken by and foraging behavior of N. grandis in Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe (15?44'S, 29021'E). We used data on variation in prey consumed and information about foraging behavior to explore the interactions between prey availability, the bats' foraging strategies, and the prey they took. MATERIALS AND METHODS We documented the prey taken in the 14 month period beginning in March 1987, by collecting prey remains about once a week from under three feeding perches (water tower, house and office-Fig. 1) used by N. grandis. We sorted the remains by order and, where possible, by species. I Received 30 July 1988, revision accepted 12 December 1988. 2 Present address: Department of Biology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada. 2 BIOTROPICA 22(1): 2-8 1990 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.243 on Wed, 05 Oct 2016 04:48:02 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms TABLE 1. Monthly changes in the diet of Nycteris grandis between March 1987 and April 1988 as reflected by prey remains collected under the water tower feeding perch. The numbers reflect the prey consumed, while the masses (*) of prey are estimates based on the amounts of culled parts and have averaged bats and birds as 8 g, frogs and fish as 5 g and arthropods as 1 g.

Two New Species of Chiggers (Acari: Trombiculidae) from East African Bats (Chiroptera)1

Microtrombicula (Eltonella) tanzaniae is described from specimens collected from Noack's African Leaf-nosed Bat, Hipposideros ruber ruber , Persian Leaf-nosed Bat, Triaenops persicus afer , and Egyptian Slit-faced Bat, Nycteris thebaica , and Whartonia novemsetosa from Egyptian Fruit Bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus , taken in Tanzania, Africa. New host and locality records are given for Whartonia oweni .

Prey Selection by the Slit-Faced Bat Nycteris thebaica (Chiroptera: Nycteridae) in Natal, South Africa

Prey Selection by the Slit-Faced Bat Nycteris thebaica (Chiroptera: Nycteridae) in Natal, South Africa

On a new trematode, Prohemistomum azimi n. sp. (Trematoda: Cyathocotylidae) from the Egyptian slit-faced bat.

Prohemistomum azimi n. sp. is described from one out of four Egyptian slit-faced bats, Nycteris thebaica Geffroy, 1910 captured from Giza, Egypt. The new species is compared with other related species of the genus and its specific diagnosis is outlined. The new species is the first record of the genus Prohemistomum Odhner, 1913 from Chiroptera.