By Jasmine Bhatia
Geographic Range
Arid and semi-arid regions of Mexico and southwestern United States, including the Sonoran Desert (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Habitat
Leptonycteris curasoae is found near cacti, usually living in caves in huge groups. The habitat ranges from desert scrub in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico to high elevations on wooded mountains further south in Mexico.
Terrestrial Biomes:
desert or dune 
; scrub forest .
Physical Description
(0.81 oz)
(3.15 in)
(9.84 in)
Leptonycteris curasoae is a yellow-brown or cinnamon gray bat, with a total head and body measurement of approximately 3 inches (7.62 cm). The tongue measures approximately the same length as the body. This species also has a small noseleaf. The wingspan of L. curasoae is approximately 10 inches (25 cm) and the mass is roughly 23 g (Snyder and Tyler, 1997; all information from Southwest Species Center Database, 1997, unless otherwise noted.)
Some key physical features:
endothermic ; bilateral symmetry .
Reproduction
Varies
Little is known about the mating system and behavior of L. curasoae. It is known, however, that females converge on maternity colonies to birth and care for their young (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Little is known about the reproductive behavior of L. curasoae. It is hypothesized that the gestation period is approximately five months. It is not known whether gestation involves delayed implantation or delayed development. There are different mating/birthing schedules for different populations. In Venezuela, mating occurs in November and birth in May; in southern Mexico, females give birth in December or January; in Baja California, babies are born in March (Ceballos et al. 1997).
There is only one pup per litter. This bat is not bimodally polyestrous (it does not give birth twice a year). Sperm production is maximal during the late wet season (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Key reproductive features:
gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual .
Females converge on maternity colonies, which consist of anywhere from several thousand to over one hundred thousand pregnant animals. The females do not come to the colony at the same time or during the same stage of pregnancy. The births are generally spread out over a one-month period. In the northern Sonoran Desert and in Arizona, females converge on the maternity colonies in mid- to late-April. This timing varies by population (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Each female cares for her single pup alone. In the maternity colonies, no attempts are made by mothers to nurse or feed others' babies. They do, however, exhibit other behaviors, such as visiting, touching and nosing others' pups several times per night (Ceballos et al. 1997).
The young begin to fly at approximately four weeks of age (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Parental investment:
altricial ; female parental care .
Behavior
Leptonycteris curasoae exhibits many characteristic behaviors, including gregarious roosting, no cooperative/social bonding, unexpected sleeping patterns, and local and long distance migration along nectar trails/corridors (Fleming et al. 1998).
The lesser long-nosed bat spends over half of its life in a dayroost, leaving only to forage at night. It spends most of its time in the dayroost resting, digesting food, interacting with other individuals, mating and caring for young. Individuals of this species form extremely large colonies, including tens of thousands to over one hundred thousand animals, in caves which trap metabolic heat. This metabolic heat reduces the energetic cost to females and increases growth rates in the young. In these colonies, the adults are fairly passive; there is a low frequency of interactions among females, and between females and their young. The most frequent behavior is nosing other individuals. This species is non-cooperative; they do not exhibit socially cooperative behavior like allogrooming, and females have only been seen to nurse their own young (Fleming et al. 1998).
Although L. curasoae rests during the day and does not actively move or fly, this chiropteran is usually fully awake and alert. For reasons yet unknown, this species sleeps much less than is predicted by its body size and metabolic rate (Fleming et al. 1998).
Members of this species also tend to migrate along a nectar trail or corridor, following the availability of food resources. This behavior is exhibited especially in the northern region of the bat's range, where resources are not available year-round. The females also migrate when they converge on maternity colonies near the end of their pregnancies (Rojas-Martinez et al. 1999).
Food Habits
The diet of Leptonycteris curasoae consists of nectar and pollen from the night-blooming flowers of the Agavaceae, Bombaceae, Cactaceae, Convolvulaceae and Leguminosae. This animal also feeds on the pulp of cactus fruit. It is not an obligate cactus visitor. Its diet is influenced by availability of possible food resources (Ceballos et al. 1997).
Leptonycteris curasoae forages at night, between 24:00 and 02:00, when flowers have accumulated substantial amounts of nectar. The bat begins by taking generally long commuting flights to its foraging area. Once the bat arrives at the foraging area (which usually consists of about one square kilometer), it surveys many plants. Later, it may make return visits to several of those plants to feed (Horner et al. 1998).
Primary Diet:
herbivore (frugivore , nectarivore ).
Plant Foods:
fruit; nectar.
Ecosystem Roles
This species has a very close relationship with the cacti on which it feeds. Since L. curasoae is a nectarivore with a relatively large foraging area, its feeding produces short and long distance pollen movements. By doing so, the bat helps to create gene flow within and between populations of columnar cacti (Horner et al. 1998).
Through fecal analysis, it has been shown that this species also disperses the seeds of fruit on which it feeds (Rojas-Martinez et al. 1999).
Key ways these animals impact their ecosystem:
disperses seeds; pollinates.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Leptonycteris curasoae helps to pollinate the agave, from which tequila is made (Arita and Wilson, 1987).
Ways that people benefit from these animals:
pollinates crops.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List: [link]:
Vulnerable.
US Federal List: [link]:
Endangered.
CITES: [link]:
No special status.
Leptonycteris curasoae is considered an endangered species in North America. Destruction of its primary food resources and general habitat by the tequila industry and agriculture is threatening its population numbers. This species is also especially vulnerable to extinction because it is a specialist, feeding on the nectar, pollen and fruit of several plant families present in southern North America and Central America. It is also especially susceptible because of its migratory habits. Conservation efforts should include food resources, roosting sites and protection of habitats along the migratory route (Arita and Santos-Del-Prado, 1999).
Other Comments
Leptonycteris curasoae has a subspecies, L. curasoae yerbabuenae. In older literature, this species has sometimes been referred to as L. sanborni.
Contributors
Jasmine Bhatia (author), University of Michigan.
Ondrej Podlaha (editor), University of Michigan.
