Wednesday, July 6, 2016

[Mammalogy • 2016] Murina fanjingshanensis • A New Species of Murina (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) from Guizhou, southwestern China


Murina fanjingshanensis   
 He, Xiao & Zhou, 2016 
Abstract
Three tube-nosed bats (one male and two female) were captured during Chiroptera investigation at the Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve in 2014. It was identified as a new species through the morphological and molecular phylogenetic analysis. The new species has a higher similarity with Murina leucogaster and Murina bicolor  in morphology, however, which has an obvious difference in skull morphology and phylogenetic evolution.

Keywords: New species, Murina, Chiroptera, China


Discussion: The M. fanjingshanensisis similar to M. bicolor and M. leucogaster, but in the morphology and molecules, M. fanjingshanensis and the latter two are apparently different.The body size of M. fanjingshanensis is between the latter two species,and the ventral color is different from M. leucogaster, however which is similar to Mbicolor, and without yellow or white patches. The bifid of upper incisors are similar to M. bicolor, however, the lingual cingular cusp of M. fanjingshanensis is not obvious. The head and body length and the greatest length of skull of M. fanjingshanensis are smaller than M. leucogaster, however which is bigger than M. fanjingshanensis significantly in some critical measurements data. The phylogenetic relationships or genetic distances all indicate that the M. fanjingshanensis is having a closest relationship with the M. bicolor, however the genetic distance between the two species is significantly larger than interspecific genetic distance of Murina. Therefore, the M. fanjingshanensis was identified as a new species through the morphology and the molecular evidence.

Etymology: Because the species was collected from the Fanjingshan Natural National Reserve (FNNR), hence we name the new species as M. fanjingshanensis.


The distribution and ecology: This new species known only from Luojiawan village of Wuluotown and Pingsuo village of Xinye town, located in the FNNR of Guizhou Province,China. The type species was captured in an abandoned gold mine, where a bamboo grove growing along a stream, and the altitude is 1069m. All the M. fanjingshanensis are hang up together by 1 to 3 individuals, and Rhinolophus luctus, Rhinolophus thomasi, Rhinolophus yunnanensis, and Myotis altarium roosted together in the same cave.


Fang He, Ning Xiao and Jiang Zhou. 2016. A New Species of Murina from China (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae). Cave Research. 2: 2 http://www.ivypubs.com/content/2/2