Miniopterus minor Peters 1867

Miniopterus cf. minor Peters, 1867

(Fig. 18, Table 3)

Miniopterus minor Peters, 1867: 870.

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — 11 specimens (see Table 1).

ORIGINAL DATA. — A total of 11 individuals attributed to this species were obtained from a cave at an altitude of 1400 m a.s.l. during our field surveys.

DIAGNOSIS. — The species has a forearm length of 41.0- 44.9 mm (Table 3), and possesses features typical of the genus in having a dome-shaped forehead (Fig. 18), and a second phalanx of third finger which is greatly elongated and folds back completely on metacarpals and first phalanx when at rest. The pelage is brownish dorsally and a paler brown ventrally. The interfemoral and wing membranes are brownish. The skull is characteristically large with a greatest length of 13.9-16.5 mm (Table 3), other external measurements are presented in Table 3.

REMARK. — The genus Miniopterus has a number of cryptic species with two listed to occur in Cameroon by Happold & Happold (2013): Miniopterus schreibersii (Kuhl, 1817) and Miniopterus fraterculus Thomas and Schwann, 1906. But Miniopterus schreibersii schreibersii is restricted to northern Africa (ACR 2018), while Miniopterus fraterculus in endemic to South Africa and Swaziland (Monadjem et al. 2010). Miniopterus minor Peters, 1867 has been recorded in isolated localities of central and eastern Africa (ACR 2018). Therefore further molecular investigations are required to clarify the taxonomic status of the species present in Cameroon.