The Action Plan for Australian Bats
Environment Australia, 1999
ISBN 0 642 2546 363
Recovery outlines and taxon summaries (continued)
Taxon summary: Torresian Tube-nosed Bat
Family: Pteropodidae
Scientific name: Nyctimene cephalotes Pallas, 1767
Common name:, Torresian Tube-nosed Bat
Conservation status: Data Deficient
Past range and abundance
Unknown.
Present range and abundance
Only known from Torres Strait on the basis of 3 specimens from Moa Is. (ANWC M13889, M5002, M19012). It should be noted that specimens M5002 and M19012 were previously mistakenly identified as N. vizcaccia (Bonaccorso unpub.). This species is possibly confined to Torres Strait islands within Australia, but extralimital distribution is widespread in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia where the species has been variously regarded as rare or common (Flannery 1990, Bonaccorso 1999). In New Guinea, specimens are known from Mari and Bula on the coast immediately adjacent to Torres Strait (Waithman 1979). The species may occur also on the far northern end of Cape York Peninsula; a single specimen Nyctimene sp. [cephalotes form] has been collected from central east Cape York at Silver Plains (ANWC M16259).
Habitat
Uncertain. Probably rainforest – it has been caught on the edge of rainforest and open grassy woodland on Moa Island, and is found in lowland rainforest in Papua New Guinea (Bonaccorso 1999). It may also inhabit mangrove as there are records from south coastal New Guinea (Waithman 1979).
Current threats
None known at present, but removal of rainforest or mangrove habitat would pose a serious threat if the distribution of this species is limited to Torres Strait and tip of Cape York Peninsula.
Recommended actions
- Taxonomic studies including:
- re-examination of specimens of N. robinsoni collected from Torres Strait islands and Cape York Peninsula to establish possible earlier collection of N. cephalotes; and
- confirm identity of Australian N. cephalotes in comparison with other species in the genus Nyctimene.
- Undertake targetted surveys of Torres Strait islands and adjacent mainland of Cape York to determine extent of distribution.
- Carry out ecological research to determine:
- habitat requirements;
- roost site selection;
- foraging strategy;
- threatening processes; and
- appropriate measures for conservation
- Review status based on knowledge gained through the above actions.
Bibliography
Bonaccorso F. 1999. Bats of Papua New Guinea. Conservation International, Washington.
Flannery T. 1990. Mammals of New Guinea. Robert Brown and Associates, Carina.
Hall L.S. and Richards G.C. 1979. Bats of Eastern Australia. Queensland Museum Booklet No. 12. Queensland Museum, Brisbane.
Koopman K.F. 1994. Chiroptera: systematics. In Neithammer, Schiemann and Starck (Eds). Handbuch der Zoologie Vol. 8. de Gruyter & Co., Berlin.
Richards G.C. 1995. Torresian tube-nosed bat Nyctimene vizcaccia. p. 429 in R. Strahan (Ed.) The Mammals of Australia. Reed Books, Chatswood, NSW.
Authors for the species
Frank Bonaccorso
Roger Coles
Les Hall
Greg Richards
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