Hair identification key of bats from the Kyushu District and the Ryukyu Islands, Japan

• Published in: Honyurui Kagaku (Mammalian Science) Vol. 65; no. 1; pp. 45 - 60
• Main Authors: Nagasato, Ayumi, Funakoshi, Kimitake
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: Kyoto The Mammal Society of Japan 2025; 日本哺乳類学会; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: Antennae; Chiroptera; Foraging behavior; Hair; hair morphology; identification key; Identification keys; Insects; Islands; medulla; Physical characteristics; Pteropus dasymallus; scale; Tadarida; Ryukyu Islands
• ISSN: 0385-437X; 1881-526X
• DOI: 10.11238/mammalianscience.65.45

We examined microscopic features of dorsal guard hairs in 20 species of bats (Pteropus dasymallus, Rhinolophus nippon, Rhinolophus cornutus, Hipposideros turpis, Pipistrellus abramus, Pipistrellus endoi, Hypsugo pulveratus, Myotis macrodactylus, Myotis bombinus, Myotis pruinosus, Myotis yanbarensis, Vespertilio sinensis, Plecotus sacrimontis, Murina hilgendorfi, Murina ussuriensis, Murina ryukyuana, Miniopterus fuliginosus, Miniopterus fuscus, Tadarida insignis, Tadarida latouchei) from the Kyushu District and the Ryukyu Islands. The medulla was observed only in Pteropus dasymallus. The tips of the hair were of the bamboo-shoot and insect-antennae type. The connection types of the scales were broadly divided into imbricate and coronal. The shapes of the upper edges of the scales were classified into four types: crenate, denticulate, equal, and unequal hastate. In addition, mingling (irregular scale length) and zigzagging (connecting the scales in a zigzag shape) were observed. We constructed a hair identification key based on morphological characteristics and measured hair length, scale length, and width for each species. This study suggests that hair identification keys can be useful in fields such as foraging ecology.