Rhinolophus

The genus Rhinolophus, commonly called horseshoe bats, comprises approximately 69 distinct species and the only genus of subfamily Rhinolophinae. This is the largest group within the Rhinolophidae family of bats, though they show very little in the way of ecological diversity and are very much a variation on the same theme.

Additional recommended knowledge

Daily Sensitivity Test

Weighing the right way

Correct Test Weight Handling Guide: 12 Practical Tips

Their common name comes from the large horseshoe-shaped nose leaf used for directing their ultrasound.

They have very broad, rounded wings and very fluttery flight patterns, the "archetypal flying bat". They occur over a wide range of temperate to tropical woodland and open habitat where they catch insects in mid flight and also glean insects and spiders from foliage while hovering in front of their prey.

They are thought to represent very closely the ancestral form of the "microbat" group and so are considered among the more primitive of the whole Microchiroptera.

In September 2005, four Rhinolophus species (R. sinicus, R. ferrumequinum, R. macrotis, R. pearsoni) were identified as natural reservoirs of SARS coronavirus-like viruses, the causative agent of SARS outbreaks in 2002-2004 (Li et al, 2005; Lau et al, 2005).

List of species

• Rhinolophus acuminatus Peters, 1871 - acuminate horseshoe bat
  Range: Borneo, Java, Lombok, Bali, Palawan, Nias Island, Enggano Island, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia
• Rhinolophus adami Aellen & Brosset, 1968 - Adam's horseshoe bat
  Range: Congo Republic
• Rhinolophus affinis Horsfield, 1823 - intermediate horseshoe bat
  Range: Indonesia, Malaysia, Sumba, Andaman Islands, Sri Lanka, Southern China
• Rhinolophus alcyone Temminck, 1852 - halcyon horseshoe bat
  Range: Ghana, Senegal, Uganda, SW.Sudan, N.Zaire, Gabon, Bioko
• Rhinolophus anderseni Cabrera, 1909 - Anderson's horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines-Luzon, Palawan
• Rhinolophus arcuatus Peters, 1871 - arcuate horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines, Wetar, Sumatra, Sarawak
• Rhinolophus blasii Peters, 1867 - Blasius' horseshoe bat
  Range: Europe, SW.Asia, Afghanistan, Caucasus, Morocco, Tunisia, Eritrea, N. Africa
• Rhinolophus borneensis Peters, 1861 - Bornean horseshoe bat
  Range: N.Borneo, Labuan Island, Banguey Island, Karimata Island, S.Natuna Islands, Cambodia, Vietnam, Java, Bali, Timor, Sulawesi
• Rhinolophus canuti Thomas & Wroughton, 1909 - Canut's horseshoe bat
  Range: Java, Timor
• Rhinolophus capensis Lichtenstein, 1823 - Cape horseshoe bat
  Range: South Africa-Cape Province, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe
• Rhinolophus celebensis K. Andersen, 1905 - Sulawesi horseshoe bat
  Range: South Africa
• Rhinolophus chiewkweeae Yoshiyuki & Lim 2005
• Rhinolophus clivosus Cretzschmar, 1828 - Geoffroy's horseshoe bat
  Range: Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Africa savanna zone south of Sahara, Algeria, Turkestan, NE.Iran, N.Afghanistan
• Rhinolophus coelophyllus Peters, 1867 - Croslet horseshoe bat
  Range: Malaya, Thailand, Myanmar
• Rhinolophus cognatus K. Andersen, 1906 - kindred horseshoe bat
  Range: Andaman Islands
• Rhinolophus cornutus Temminck, 1835 - little Japanese horseshoe bat
  Range: Japan, SEChina
• Rhinolophus creaghi Thomas, 1896 - Creagh's horseshoe bat
  Range: Borneo, Madura, Java, Timor
• Rhinolophus darlingi small>K. Andersen, 1905 - Darling's horseshoe bat
  Range: Transvaal, Namibia, S.Angola, N.Botswana, W.Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania
• Rhinolophus deckenii Peters, 1868 - Decken's horseshoe bat
  Range: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Pemba, Zanzibar
• Rhinolophus denti Thomas, 1904 - Dent's horseshoe bat
  Range: Northern Cape Province, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Guinea
• Rhinolophus eloquens K. Andersen, 1905 - eloquent horseshoe bat
  Range: Uganda, S.Somalia, S.Sudan, NE.Zaire, Kenya, Rwanda, N.Tanzania, Pemba, Zanzibar
• Rhinolophus euryale Blasius, 1853 - Mediterranean horseshoe bat
  Range: S.Europe, N.Africa, Turkestan, Iran, V.România (Tăşad)
• Rhinolophus euryotis Temminck, 1835 - broad-eared horseshoe bat
  Range: Aru Islands, Buru, Ambon Island, Seram, Timor, Kai Islands, batchian, New Guinea, Bismark archipelago, Sulawesi
• Rhinolophus feae K. Andersen, 1905
  Range: Myanmar, Thailand
• Rhinolophus ferrumequinum Schreber, 1774 - greater horseshoe bat
  Range: Europe, UK, N.Africa, S.Palearctic, Japan
• Rhinolophus fumigatus Ruppell, 1842 - Rüppell's horseshoe bat
  Range: Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan,Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Zaire, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, Benin, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger, Cameroon, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Angola, Namibia, South Africa
• Rhinolophus guineensis Eisentraut, 1960 - Guinean horseshoe bat
  Range: Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone
• Rhinolophus hildebrandti Peters, 1878 - Hildebrandt's horseshoe bat
  Range: Transvaal, Mozambique, Ethiopia, S. Sudan, NE. Zaire
• Rhinolophus hipposideros Bechstein, 1800 - lesser horseshoe bat
  Range: Ireland, UK, Europe, Iberia, Morocco, N. Africa, Turkestan, Kashmir
• Rhinolophus imaizumii Hill & Yoshiyuki, 1980 - Imaizumi's horseshoe bat
  Range: S.Japan-Iriomote Island
• Rhinolophus inops K. Andersen, 1905 - Philippine forest horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines-Mindanao
• Rhinolophus keyensis Peters, 1871 - insular horseshoe bat
  Range: batchian, Seram, Goram, Kai Islands, Wetar Island
• Rhinolophus landeri Martin, 1838 - Lander's horseshoe bat
  Range: Senegal, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, South Africa, Namibia, W.Angola, Bioko, Zaire, Zanzibar
• Rhinolophus lepidus Blyth, 1844 - Blyth's horseshoe bat
  Range: Afghanistan, N.India, Myanmar, Thailand, Sichuan, Yunnan, Malaya, Sumatra
• Rhinolophus luctus Temminck, 1835 - woolly horseshoe bat
  Range: India, Nepal, Sikkim, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, S.China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Malaya, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Bali
• Rhinolophus maclaudi Pousargues, 1897 - Maclaud's horseshoe bat
  Range: Guinea, E.Zaire, W.Uganda, Rwanda
• Rhinolophus macrotis Blyth, 1844 - big-eared horseshoe bat
  Range: N.India, S.China, Vietnam, Malaya, Sumatra, Guimaras Island
• Rhinolophus malayanus Bonhote, 1903 - Malayan horseshoe bat
  Range: Thailand, Laos, Vietnam
• Rhinolophus marshalli Thonglongya, 1973 - Marshall's horseshoe bat
  Range: Thailand
• Rhinolophus megaphyllus Gray, 1834 - smaller horseshoe bat
  Range: E.New Guinea, Misima Island, Goodenough Island, Bismark archipelago, Australia -Queensland, New South Wales, SE. Victoria
• Rhinolophus mehelyi Matschie, 1901 - Mehely's horseshoe bat
  Range: S.Europe, Morocco, Cyrenaica, Asia Minor, Caucasus, Iran
• Rhinolophus mitratus Blyth, 1844 - mitred horseshoe bat
  Range: N.India
• Rhinolophus monoceros K. Andersen, 1905 - Formosan lesser horseshoe bat
  Range: Taiwan
• Rhinolophus nereis K. Andersen, 1905 - Neriad horseshoe bat
  Range: Siantan Island, Bungaran Island
• Rhinolophus osgoodi Sanborn, 1939 - 92-92.5kHz
  Range: China-Yunnan
• Rhinolophus paradoxolophus Bourret, 1951 - Bourret's horseshoe bat
  Range: N.Vietnam, Thailand
• Rhinolophus pearsonii Horsfield, 1851 - Pearson's horseshoe bat
  Range: N.India, Myanmar, China-Sichuan, Anhui, Fujian, N.Vietnam, Thailand, Malaya
• Rhinolophus philippinensis Waterhouse, 1843 - large-eared horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines-Mindoro, Luzon, Mindanao, Negros, Kai Islands, S.Sulawesi, Timor, N.Borneo, Australia-NE.Queensland
• Rhinolophus pusillus Temminck, 1834 - least horseshoe bat
  Range: India, Thailand, Malaya, Mentawai Islands
• Rhinolophus rex G. M. Allen, 1923 - king horseshoe bat
  Range: SW.China
• Rhinolophus robinsoni K. Andersen, 1918 - peninsular horseshoe bat
  Range: Malaya, Thailand
• Rhinolophus rouxii Temminck, 1835 - rufous horseshoe bat
  Range: Sri Lanka, India, S.China, Vietnam
• Rhinolophus rufus Eydous & Gervais, 1836 - large rufous horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines
• Rhinolophus sakejiensis Cotterill, 2002
  Range: Zambia
• Rhinolophus sedulus K. Andersen, 1905 - lesser woolly horseshoe bat
  Range: Malaya, Borneo
• Rhinolophus shameli Tate, 1943 - Shamel's horseshoe bat
  Range: Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaya
• Rhinolophus silvestris Aellen, 1959 - forest horseshoe bat
  Range: Gabon, Congo Republic
• Rhinolophus simplex K. Andersen, 1905 - Lombok horseshoe bat
  Range: Lombok, Sumbawa, Komodo Island
• Rhinolophus simulator K. Andersen, 1904 - bushveld horseshoe bat
  Range: South Africa, S.Sudan, Ethiopia, Cameroon, N.Nigeria
• Rhinolophus stheno K. Andersen, 1905 - lesser brown horseshoe bat
  Range: Malaya, Thailand, Sumatra, Java
• Rhinolophus subbadius Blyth, 1844 - little Nepalese horseshoe bat
  Range: Assam, Nepal, N.Vietnam, Myanmar
• Rhinolophus subrufus K. Andersen, 1905 - small rufous horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines-Mindanao, Luzon, Mindoro, Negros
• Rhinolophus swinnyi Gough, 1908 - Swinny's horseshoe bat
  Range: South Africa, S.Zaire, Zanzibar
• Rhinolophus thomasi K. Andersen, 1905 - Thomas' horseshoe bat
  Range: SE. Myanmar, N. Vietnam, Thailand, Yunnan
• Rhinolophus trifoliatus Temminck, 1834 - trefoil horseshoe bat
  Range: Malaya, Sumatra, Riau Islands, Banguey Island, Borneo, Java, SW.Thailand, Myanmar, NE.India, Bangka Island, Nias
• Rhinolophus virgo K. Andersen, 1905 - yellow-faced horseshoe bat
  Range: Philippines
• Rhinolophus yunanensis Dobson, 1872 - Dobson's horseshoe bat
  Range: China-Yunnan, Thailand, NE.India

References

• Li, W, Zhengli, S, Meng, Y et al . (2005). Bats are natural reservoirs of SARS-like coronaviruses. Science 310 (5748):676–679.
• Lau, S, Woo, P, Li, K et al . (2005). Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-like virus in Chinese horseshoe bats. PNAS 102 (39):14040–14045.

References in Borneo

Abdullah MT. 2003. Biogeography and variation of Cynopterus brachyotis in Southeast Asia. PhD thesis. The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia.

Corbet, GB, Hill JE. 1992. The mammals of the Indomalayan region: a systematic review. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Hall LS, Gordon G. Grigg, Craig Moritz, Besar Ketol, Isa Sait, Wahab Marni and M.T. Abdullah. 2004. Biogeography of fruit bats in Southeast Asia. Sarawak Museum Journal LX(81):191-284.

Karim, C., A.A. Tuen and M.T. Abdullah. 2004. Mammals. Sarawak Museum Journal Special Issue No. 6. 80: 221—234.

Mohd. Azlan J., Ibnu Maryanto , Agus P. Kartono and M.T. Abdullah. 2003 Diversity, Relative Abundance and Conservation of Chiropterans in Kayan Mentarang National Park, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Sarawak Museum Journal 79: 251-265.

Hall LS, Richards GC, Abdullah MT. 2002. The bats of Niah National Park, Sarawak. Sarawak Museum Journal. 78: 255-282.

Wilson DE, Reeder DM. 2005. Mammal species of the world. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington DC.