Mexican greater funnel-eared bat

Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. described it as a new species in 1902.{{cite journal|last=Tejedor| first=A|date=2005|title= A new species of funnel-eared bat (Natalidae: Natalus) from Mexico| journal=Journal of Mammalogy|volume= 86|issue=6| pages=1109–1120| doi=10.1644/1545-1542(2005)86[1109:ansofb]2.0.co;2|doi-access=}} Other authors followed in listing N. mexicanus as a full species in 1949.{{cite journal|last1=Dalquest| first1=W. W.|last2= Hall|first2= E. R.|date= 1949|title= A new subspecies of funnel-eared bat (Natalus mexicanus) from eastern Mexico|journal=Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington|volume= 62|pages= 153–154}}

In 1959, George Goodwin revised it from a species to a subspecies of the Mexican funnel-eared bat, Natalus stramineus.{{cite journal|last=Goodwin|first= G. G. |date=1959| title=Bats of the subgenus Natalus| journal= American Museum Novitates|issue=1977|pages=1–22|url=http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/bitstream/handle/2246/4078/N1977.pdf?sequence=1|access-date=October 6, 2017}}

It was revised again to species status in 2006.{{cite journal|last=Tejedor|first= A|date= 2006|title= The type locality of Natalus stramineus (Chiroptera: Natalidae): implications for the taxonomy and biogeography of the genus Natalus| journal=Acta Chiropterologica|volume= 8|issue=2|pages= 361–380|doi=10.3161/1733-5329(2006)8[361:ttlons]2.0.co;2|s2cid= 86303052}}{{cite journal|last=Tejedor|first=A|date=2011|title=Systematics of Funnel-Eared Bats (Chiroptera: Natalidae)|journal=Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History|volume=353|pages=1–140|doi=10.1206/636.1|hdl=2246/6120|s2cid=84311591|url=https://zenodo.org/record/5406518}}

In 2012, another funnel-eared bat of Mexico, Natalus lanatus, was synonymized with Natalus mexicanus, so that there is currently only one recognized species of funnel-eared bat in Mexico.{{cite journal|last1=López-Wilchis|first1= R.|last2=Guevara-Chumacero|first2=L. M.|last3=Angeles Perez|first3=N.|last4=Juste|first4= J.|last5= IbáñEz|first5= C.|last6=Barriga-Sosa|first6= I. D.|date=2012|title= Taxonomic status assessment of the Mexican populations of funnel-eared bats, genus Natalus (Chiroptera: Natalidae)|journal=Acta Chiropterologica|volume=14|issue=2|pages= 305–316|doi=10.3161/150811012x661639|s2cid= 85765304}}

It is a small bat, weighing only {{convert|3-5|g|oz|abbr=on}}. Its forearms are {{convert|36-39|mm|in|abbr=on}} long. Its back is a pale orange-brown or yellow in color, and its belly is yellow. It has broad, cream-colored ears with blackish margins. The skin of its face is pale pink. Its limbs are very long in relation to its body size. Its wings are long and narrow with pale brown flight membranes.{{cite book|last=Reid|first=F|date=1997|title= A field guide to the mammals of Central America and Southeast Mexico| publisher=Oxford University Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TXQe9P5Z_7UC|pages=143|isbn=0195064011|access-date=October 6, 2017}}

Females are monoestrous, or capable of becoming pregnant once a year. Pregnant females have been observed January through July, and gestation is thought to last 8–10 months due to slow fetal development. The litter size is one pup. It roosts in caves during the day. It is colonial, forming groups of up to 300 individuals.

It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. It is not found at elevations above {{convert|2400|m|ft|abbr=on}}, though most observations of it occur at around {{convert|300|m|ft|abbr=on}}. It prefers dry and semi-deciduous forests. Occasionally, it is also encountered in conifer forests.

As of 2019, it is evaluated as least concern by the IUCN. While its population trend is unknown, it is thought that it is, at least, not declining rapidly. It is threatened by cave disturbance by tourists and by mining activities.

{{Reflist}}

{{Natalidae}}

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Category:Taxa named by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr.

Category:Bats of Central America

Category:Mammals described in 1902

Category:Natalus