Neoromicia grandidieri Dobson 1876

131.

Grandidier’s Serotine

Neoromicia grandidieri

French: Vespere de Grandidier / German: GrandidierZwergfledermaus / Spanish: Neoromicia de Grandidier

Other common names: Grandidier’s Pipistrelle, Dobson's Pipistrelle, Yellow Pipistrelle

Taxonomy. Vesperugo (Vesperus) grandidieri Dobson, 1876,

Tanzania, Zanzibar.

This species was long listed under the species name offlavescens, a name introduced by A. F. Seabra in 1900. In 2007, E. Thorn and colleagues concluded that flavescens was a nomen dubium and should be replaced by grandidieri. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

N.g.grandidieriDobson,1876—Uganda, Burundi,SEKenya,NETanzania,includingUngujaI(ZanzibarArchipelago),andMalawi;possiblyalsoSomalia.

N. g. angolensis Hill, 1937 — Cameroon and Angola.

Descriptive notes. Head-body ¢.51-56 mm, tail 30-34 mm, ear 8-13 mm, hindfoot 8-10 mm, forearm 33-38 mm; weight 7-8 g. Pelage of Grandidier’s Serotineis silky with slight sheen; dorsally pale brown, with unicolored hairs (mid-dorsal hairs c.5-6 mm long); ventrally very slightly paler and usually yellowish, with unicolored hairs. Wings are blackish brown and slightly translucent, usually without white hind border; interfemoral membrane is blackish brown. Ears are brown, subtriangular, and relatively short; tragus is ¢.60% of ear length, broadest at mid-height, with anterior margin straight, posterior margin smoothly convex with conspicuous basal lobe, and tip rounded. Baculum is fairly straight, tapering to a slender tip, bifurcated at base, with margins somewhat bent ventrally to form a half-pipe covering urethra for basal two-thirds. Muzzle is short and broad. Skull is comparatively large and robust for an African pipistrelle-like bat; profile of forehead is weakly concave to almost straight; occipital helmet is sometimes present. Upper tooth row is parallel; I? is bicuspid; I° is almost as high as I*; P* is minute, displaced lingually, and sometimes invisible in labial view or absent. C' and P* are in contact; lower molars are myotodont. Dental formula 1812/3, C1/1,P 1-2/2, M 3/3 (x2) = 32-34.

Habitat. In Malawi, montane evergreen and riverine forests, and in a mosaic of farmland and wetter Zambezian miombo woodland in Shire Highlands. In Somalia, river ine forest in Jubba Valley. In Tanzania, lowland forest, secondary forest, undifferentiated riverine forest, forest edge, and submontane forest at 120-800 m. In Angola, wetter miombo woodland zone. Overall altitudinal range is 120-1633 m.

Food and Feeding. Grandidier’s Serotine has been caught foraging over ponds, streams, and pools. Diet is unknown.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Grandidier’s Serotine is moderately maneuverable in flight; it can take off from the ground. One individual from Malawi had low aspect ratio and low wing loading.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List (as Pipistrellus grandidieri), due to uncertainties regarding its exact extent of occurrence, ecological requirements, and threats. Major threats include mining, logging, and wood harvesting.

Bibliography. Hill & Harrison (1987), Jacobs et al. (2017), Koopman (1993, 1994), Seabra (1900), Simmons (2005), Thorn et al. (2007), Van Cakenberghe & Happold (2013h).