nico64's Identifications

Just hanging under a tree about 8ft from the ground. Another guest kind guest called John showed us where they were (he's a lovely bloke - very funny!) The map location is pretty much spot-on - they were in the tree/bush that's marked on the side nearest to the closest building.

C-C: 7.0, M^1-M^1: 10.5, C-M^1: 11.9

Identification of these small Epomophorus bats in Kasanka is a bit tricky: they clearly belong to the crypturus/labiatus/minimus group based on the pattern of the palatal ridges. Morphometrically, they agree with what Bergmans & van Strien (2004) identified as "E. cf. labiatus" from Malawi, and are smaller than E. crypturus, E. angolensis, and E. anselli.

However, these small Epomophorus would also agree in measurements with what was previously called E. minor, and what is now generally accepted as E. minimus. The latter species is currently assumed to range from Ethiopia to East Africa, with no records near Kasanka NP. Based on distribution, Kasanka specimens are tentatively referred to E. labiatus.

Bergmans, W., Van Strien, N., 2004. Systematic notes on a collection of bats from Malawi. I. Megachiroptera: Epomophorinae and Rousettinae (Mammalia, Chiroptera). Acta Chiropterologica 6(2) 249-268.
http://dx.doi.org/10.3161/001.006.0205

A Group of Wahlberg's Epauletted Fruit Bats come here every spring (October) to mate and raise their offspring. They sleep during the day in a King Palm (Archontophoenix alexandrea). At the moment we have about 14 bats here with at least 4 female bats with babies, some smaller juvenile bats and some grown up bats. The maximum we counted 32 bats here in our palm tree. They come every year to the same tree.