Palawan fruit bat
{{Short description|Species of bat}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Palawan fruit bat
| image =
| status = VU
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status2 = CITES_A2
| status2_system = CITES
| status2_ref = {{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}
| genus = Acerodon
| species = leucotis
| authority = (Sanborn, 1950)
| synonyms =
| range_map = Palawan Fruit Bat area.png
| range_map_caption = Palawan fruit bat range
}}
The Palawan fruit bat (Acerodon leucotis), also known as the Palawan flying fox, is a species of megabat found in forests of Palawan, Balabac and Busuanga in the Philippines.{{MSW3 Chiroptera | id = 13800010}} It is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN and is declining due to hunting and habitat loss.
Physical description
The Palawan fruit bats have a head-and-body length of {{convert|22|-|25|cm|abbr=on}}, with a forearm length of {{convert|13|-|16.5|cm|abbr=on}}.Heaney et al. (2010). [http://archive.fieldmuseum.org/philippine_mammals/species/SP_3.asp Acerodon leucotis.] Synopsis of Philippine Mammals. Field Museum of Natural History. They lack a tail. The fur and wings are brown; the latter sometimes mottled with paler splotches.
Behavior and ecology
Like almost all megabats, the Palawan fruit bat is nocturnal.Welbergen, Justin. [http://www.zoo.cam.ac.uk/zoostaff/BBE/Welbergen/Megachiroptera.htm "Brief History of Megachiroptera."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071124073636/http://www.zoo.cam.ac.uk/zoostaff/BBE/Welbergen/Megachiroptera.htm |date=2007-11-24 }} Department of Zoology. Behavioural Ecology Group. Web. 1 December 2011. Unlike many of its relatives, this species does not form large, conspicuous roosts. It likely feeds on fruits such as figs. It can reach an age of at least 5 years.
Conservation status
This species has been listed on Appendix II of CITES since 1990 and is considered vulnerable by the IUCN. The major threats are hunting and habitat loss. It is expected that much of its remaining forest habitat will be converted into plantations in the future. Since it does not form large colonies and roosting sites are inconspicuous, it has proven hard to find appropriate survey methods for precisely determining its status, but it is believed to have declined by more than 30% over the last 15 years.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Pteropodidae|P.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q301741}}
Category:Bats of Southeast Asia
Category:Bats of the Philippines
Category:Endemic fauna of the Philippines
Category:Mammals described in 1950