Hipposideros speoris (Schneider, 1800)

Species Classification

Hipposideros speoris is a small bat species.

Leaf-Nose Morphology

It can be distinguished externally from other species in the genus Hipposideros by three additional leaflets on its leaf-nose, where the outermost leaflet is smaller than the other two, plus well-developed lappets located next to the nostrils. A frontal sac is also present above the leaf-nose.

Body Coloration

Individuals of this species vary in color from gray to orange-brown; they are palest between the shoulders and on the ventral side, and darker on the flanks and posterior side.

Baculum Structure

H. speoris has a tiny baculum that is just 0.57 mm in length, with a blunt tip and slightly expanded base.

Geographic Distribution

This bat is found in India (specifically in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Uttarakhand), Sri Lanka, and has more recently been recorded in Pyay, Myanmar.

Elevation Range

It has been recorded at elevations up to 1,285 m (4,216 ft) above sea level.

Roosting Group Size

It is common and widespread across its entire range, and roosts in groups of up to 1,000 individuals.

Roosting Habitat Types

These bats typically roost in caves, caverns, underground cellars, old forts, palaces, under bridges, old disused buildings, temples, and tunnels, found across dry plains or forested hillsides.

Regional Roosting Behavior

Roosting groups in India are more scattered, while bats in Sri Lanka roost closely together.

Gestation and Birth

This bat has a gestation period of 135 to 140 days, after which a single young is born.

Newborn Physical Traits

Newborns have closed eyes, laterally folded ears, hairless bodies, a dark dorsal side, and a pink ventral side.

Juvenile Eye Development

Eye slits appear after one week, and eyes are fully opened after two weeks.

Juvenile Ear Development

Newborns lift their ears on the tenth day, and ear movements become noticeable two weeks after birth.

Juvenile Fur Development

By around one month old, juveniles have fur as dense as adult fur, though the juvenile fur is darker in color.

Suckling Posture

While sucking from one of their mother's two pubic teats, juvenile bats attach to their mother's body in a reversed position.

Newborn Foraging Transport

Most females carry their newborns with them when they fly out of the cave to forage, and most leave their infants inside the cave once the infants are older than 7 days.

Maternal Retrieval Schedule

Mothers return regularly before midnight to retrieve their young.

Retrieval Interaction

During retrieval, the mother moves toward her infant, gently touches it with her forearm, and presents her ventral surface, especially the pubic region.

Retrieval Posture

When the infant attempts to cling to the mother's body, she turns her body to an angle of around 45 degrees by partly spreading her wing membranes. This posture allows the baby to grip the mother's pubic teats and release its hold on the rock.

Post-Suckling Behavior

The infant then turns toward the mammary glands, and after suckling, it repeatedly stretches one or both of its wings.

Maternal Roosting Habits

Mothers apparently spend most of the night inside the cave.